IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


}"  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  NY    M580 

(716)  872-4303 


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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  canadien  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographicaliy  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  6t6  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-dtre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mdthode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiquds  ci-dessous. 


0 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 

Covers  damaged/ 
Couverture  endommagee 


D 
D 


Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommag^es 


sj 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurde  et/ou  pellicul6e 


y 


Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restaurdes  et/ou  pellicuides 


D 
D 

n 
n 


Cover  title  missing/ 

Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Coloured  maps/ 

Cartes  gdographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 
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Bound  with  other  material/ 
Reli6  avec  d'autres  documnnts 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reliure  serree  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
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Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajout6es 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais.  lorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6t6  filmdes. 


y 


D 


□ 

□ 


Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  d6color6es,  tachetdes  ou  piqu6es 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  detach^es 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  print  varies/ 
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Comprend  du  materiel  supolementaire 


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Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
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etc.,  ont  6t6  filmdes  d  nouveau  de  fapon  d 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


0 


Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppl6mentaires; 


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This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmd  au  taux  de  reduction  indiqud  ci-dessous. 

10X  14X  18X  22X 


26X 


30X 


/ 


12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

Library  of  the  Public 
Archives  of  Canada 


L'exemplaire  film6  fut  reproduit  grAce  it  la 
ginArositA  de: 

La  bibliothdque  des  Archives 
publiques  du  Canada 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  ^^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  6x6  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  netteti  de  Texemplaire  filmi,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemp'aires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimie  sont  filmds  en  commen^ant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  selon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autras  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmis  en  commenpant  par  la 
premidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  derniAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  ie  symbole  >h»>  signifie  "A  SUIVRE ',  le 
symbole  V  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  a^ 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  dtre 
filmi^s  6  des  taux  de  reduction  diff6rents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich6,  il  est  filmd  A  partir 
de  Tangle  sup6rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  d  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  ndcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m^thode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

THE 


NEWFOUNDLAND 


Consolidated  Copper  Mining  Company. 


CAPITAL,  $3,000,000. 

$2,500,000  FULLY  PAID  Stock. 

$500,000  Trfasury  Stock. 

Shakes,  $50  each. 

sharks  i'nassiissahle. 


Minks  in  Notrk  Dame  Bay,  Newfoundland. 


New  York: 
FRANCIS  HART  &  CO.  I'KINTLRS,  63465  MURRAY  .STREET 
--,  *  .  1881.      .  J 


^A 


I  » 


t 


■'-  '"Tj^rffi  y'lfe^  ». 


TIN': 


NEWFOUNDLAND 


CoxsouDATKi)  (j)iM'r:i<  Minim;  (.^ompaxv. 


CAPITAL.  $3,000,000. 

$2,500,000    I'tl.LV    I'AID    St(.)c:k. 
$500,000    Tkl-ASUkV    SlncK. 

Shares.  $50  kacii. 
siiarp:s  unassessable. 


Minks  in   NdikK  J)amk  Hav,  Niavfolm.i.am.. 


NkW  \'()KK  : 

KRANCIS   HAKT  .'v   CO.    I'RINrKkS, 

6j  ami  65  IMuriay  Sirt-el. 

1881. 


t 


'1  %  oo  <■ 


OFFICERS. 


Prrsit/rnt, 
ERASTUS  WIMAN, 

( >f  Messrs.  K.  O.  Dun  .t  Cn.  79  (Jucen  St.  Cl.c.i|„,i,|c,  I.o„  l„„,  U.  C.  j 

Mcvsrs.  Hun,  W .,.  *  C<i.  va  to  316  Dr.ia,l«,i,y,  New-Vurk. 

Vice- President, 
CHARLKS  M.  STKAI), 

I  )f  Mc-.ssrs.  Allen  ^  Sle..,l,  Hankers, ',.  Ilr,.iflw.,j,  NeivVo.k. 

Treasurer, 
JONATHAN  ODEI.L. 

Secretary, 
ARCHIHAI,])'j}RANn. 

Directors. 

S.K  \yiLl,I.\M  VAI.LANCK   WHITKWAY    K   V   W   C 

Attoincy-(;cn(;ral  an-!  J'lL'mier  of  -\(;wroun.llan(l. 

Hon.  AL'(;l  STL'S  W.   HARVKV 

L'u  Ao!'',''"'"'"'"'   ^''-''"''^•'- "'■  I<\^islati;e  Council  of  .Newfoundlan.l. 
KRASH'S  WI.MAN,  of  Dun's  Afcrantile  Agency 
CHARI,i;s   M.  STK.M).   linker;  '        '  ' 

HARRY  ALLEN,   Hanker; 
l^OHLRT  J.    KLMIiALL,   Hanker; 
TllEODURE   E.  LEEDS,  Counselor-at-Lavv. 

Exeat  five  Com  mi f tec 

In  Ni;ui()f.\iii,\\i), 
Sir  WFLLLWI    V.ALL.WCK   WHITEW.W,   K.  C  M    (; 

HiiN.  AicrsiHs  w.  h.\k\|':y. 

Cottuscl. 

WHriEWAY    ^    JOHNSON     .     .     St.  John\.,  Xeu'founMand. 

.      18    ir,7//  .street,  .V.7. -- )  ?W-. 


IKAYENI'UR'J'  cV   LEEDS 


Registrar  of  Transfers. 

FARMERS'   LOAN  AND  TRUST  COMPANY,  New-York. 


Nkw-York  Office,  62  Hroadway. 


/ 


AI  A  P 

OF  PART  OF  THE 

KASTEKN  SHOHK  of  NEWFOU    dl.AND 

SHOWING  THE  MINING  PROPERTY 
OF  THE 

NEWFOUNDLAND  CONSOLI  ,ATED 
COPPER-MINING  COMP/ W 


KmiauYHUU 


Mout 


Stocking  Haib    j^T^ 


r 


r     vJ'^';>^^4^^^ 


^- 


»»' 


,B>yUl^ 


Ml 


:-r-' 


Ctinliiaion     \  *'*' 


Ml  I  \;^ 


BAY 


O     /• 


^y     O       T      f^        £. 


^       ^1       vl/      £ 


7  . 

>Hmtid 


V 


Gulll* 


OH       GR  E  K ^ 


BAY 


*'■■**'  ,^      ISLANDS 

.1   '       "<•• 


<l^ 


^V  -v  '-k^'S     Island    Tickl.: 


U  ^a  -^ 


^  'Vriiifiin  Horkt 


* 


I- 


(• 


m;v\t()cm)i.\.\|) 

ll'.\Ti;i)   COI'I'I^K    M|N|^-(;   q. 


TIk:  vr,ri„„s   i,n,p,.,-ti«  .,„,Ktl   an<l   controll.,1    by  this 

iMt,.  ,K.„,|,|„„.|,„„d,  „„  ,1,,  i.l.uu,  „f  N„vf,„„Klia„cl.  within 

s" ,;  ?:  ,;'"■""  '""  "'^-  ^'"''-'  S'«-.  ■■'""  -Kl't  days  fr„„, 
Swansea,  the  grrat  c.ppcr  market  of  I'nglan.l 

These   n.iiK,   have    hilhiTt,,    :„.,,„    „-„,|,„|    ,       private 

-terp,-,se,  altl,.,„,,|,  s,.n,e  „f  then,  have,  for  t»o  >ea  s  past 

been  „,p,„ra,edn„der  the  title  „f  a  KintitedContpany 

»"l-  ""ly    tlm-e    M,d,vi,h,al   st„ckh„i,!e,-s.   the    ternts  of  tife 

J.r«an„ai,on  I.en,,  s„ch  as  to  prevent  any  one  of  the  stock- 

'>;.-sd,sp„s,„,olan>-ofhi,stoek^     The  discontinuance  of 

1-  h,n„ed  conrpanv-,  „  hnh  was  in  fact  a  partnership,  became 

nccessan-  iii  conscMu.ncc  uf  the  ,1,.  ,f|,  ,,r  tu 

..,.  ,  1  .  u.  UK  UL.itli  Ml   the  senior  partner. 

\Vmu>nt   a  re-or5,.um.ati..n   too   many  difficulties  were  pre- 
sented  to   the  operating   of  nnmerous   dcvelopn.ents  which 
W  been  um.ated  on   the  properties.      At  the  present  time 
Mere    are    hve    uuiependenc  niines  in   active  operation,  with 
'HM.-    houses,   stores,  .uul  necessary  machinery.      IWision 
was  also  re<,unvd  for  the  workin.,.   of  several  other  deposits 
O'  copper  ore  which   I^ue   been   discovered,  and  which  from 
iMeu-  character  warrant  development. 

Many  of  the  pr..pc.rt,e..  are  ouned  hv  the  Company  The 
rcmanuler  are  held  un.ler  leases,  the  -i^inal  lesLes  having 
pmcured   then-  r.^hts   from  the   ...ernment  of  Newfound- 


Any  British  subject  can  claim  on  land  not  already  <Tranted 
a  li^fjit  of  search  for  minerals  o\er  an  area  of  three  stjiiare 
miles,  on  payment  of  £5  W  ithin  two  years  of  obtaining  it 
In-  mast  select  one  square  mile  from  these,  the  other  two 
square  miles  lapsing  to  the  j^oxernnunt.  If  on  a  j^rant,  the 
};rantee  shall  sjjend  /,"4,ooo  within  eleven  \ears,  it  becomes 
his  property  in  perpetuitv-  in  fee  simple. 

At  Betts  Cove,  Little  Bay,  Robert's  Arm,  ilall's  Bay,  anil 
Southwest  Arm,  amounts  far  exceeding  the  stipulated 
;{"4,000  have  already  been  spent. 

1  he  following  table  represents  the  area  of  each  property 
which  the  (."om[)any  n;ay  possess  in  absolute  fee  simple  on 
complying  with  the  foregoing  regulations,  the  numbers 
being  added  for  reference  to  the  accompanxing  map : 


N(.>.   1 .      Betts  (."o\x' 


2  s(|uare  miles. 


'  *        -^ 

LittU'  May 

3          "             " 

t  1              T 

Whaler  iiaek 

1  square  mile. 

"     4- 

Hall's  Bay      . 

4  square  miles 

5- 

Robert^  Arm 

11 

••     6. 

Southwest  .Ann 

4        " 

"• 

Seal  Bay 

I  stpiare  mile. 

•'     S. 

Burton's  I'oiul 

1 

•'    9. 

Otter  Island 

1 

Making  a  tr)tal  of  27  sqnart.'  miles,  or  17,280  acres. 

Royalty  paid  to  the  original  h-ssees  of  the  [iroperties 
now  held  b\'  the  Betts  Cove  Mining  Co.  and  Robert's  .Arm 
mine  : 


Betts  Cove     . 
Little  Bay 
South  West  Arm 
Hall's  Bay      . 
Robert's  Arm 


2s.  \H'v  ton  of  ore. 
4i/.  per  unit 
5«'/.     '■ 

5\.  per  ton. 


Si.\  of  the  licenses  at  Robert's  Arm  are  free  of  royalt)'  ; 
also  two  at  Hail's  Ba>-.  and  the  one  at  Seal  Bay. 


The  Bctts  Cove  mine  is  situated  at  Betts  Head,  three- 
quarters  of  a  mile   from    the   harbor,   with   which  it  is  con- 
nected   b)-    a    tramway   of  two    inclines,    fully    fitted    with 
brake-houses,  cars,  wire  rope,  and  all  necessary  equipments 
the  tramuays  being  laid  with  6o-lb.  iron  rails.     In  addition 
to  three-quarters  of  a  mile  of  wharta-e.  Betts  Cove  has  two 
retail    stores    for    the    supply    of   the    employes    and    their 
famuies;   upward,  of   iCo  houses,  affording  accommodation 
for   1.800   persons;    three  churches,   engineers'    workshops 
with    iron    and   brass   foundr>-,   school-room,    and    hospital 
capable   of  accommodating  20   patients,   besides   numerous 
stores  for  grain,  hay,  provisions  and  necessary  mining  stock. 

2.   Little  Bay.— Is  situated  about  15  miles  south-w<='st 
of  Betts  Cove,  which  it  ri\als  in  the  rapiditv  of  its  develop 
ment,  and  in  the  magnitude  of  its  ore  deposit.      Two  years 
only  have  elap.sed   since   its  discovery,  during  which  period 
45.000  tons  of  copper  ore.  of  an  average  value  of  $20  per 
ton,    have   been   shipped   to    England  ;     while   there   are   at 
present  on    the  ground   7.500  tons  ready  for  shipment,  and 
in   addition  40.000  tons  of  undressed  ore  are  on  the  reserve 
dumps.     The  outr.op   of  ore   is  exposed   on   the  strike  for 
1.000  feet,  on    which  are    sunk   eight  shafts,  from  80  to  150 
teet  apart,  the  deepest  being  260  feet.      The  stopes  in  Nos 
5   and  6  are  35   tVet  wide  of  solid  ore,  requiring  hardly  any 
p.ckmg  before   shipment.      Here  a   complete   mining   town 
has   been   established,    consisting  of  over  200  houses,  with 
school-house  and  chapel.     The  mine  is  connected  bv  a  sub 
stantial   inclined   tramway,  perfectly  equipped  and  laid  with 
60-lb.  rails,  with  a  pier,  alongsi.  e  which  vessels  of  anv  ton- 
nage   may  he    in   perfect   security,    the   harbor   bef  ig' com 
pletely   landlocked    except  at   one    narrow   inlet.      In    close 
proxinnty  to  the  tramua>-  and  wharf  are  situated  the  smelt 
•ng  works,  consisting  of  three  cupola  furnaces,  each  carable 
of  reducing  10  tons  of  ore  to  regulus  in  24  hours 

Near  the  mine  are  two  large  ponds,  caj.able  of  supplying 
an>  necessary  amount  of  water  for  washing  and  concentrat^ 
ing  operations. 


8 


In  addition  to  the  buildings,  plant,  and  machinery  above 
enumerated,  the  Company  possesses  a  powerful  steamer,  with 
a  steam  launch,  used  for  intercommunication  between  the 
different  mines,  'this  steamer  is  of  great  power,  having 
been  built  for  a  steam-tug ;  last  year  she  was  enlarged  and 
put  in  thorough  order,  and  is  of  great  use,  not  only  as  a 
means  of  communication  between  the  difl'erent  ports,  but  as 
a  means  of  towing  sailing-vessels  in  and  out  of  harbor. 

Attention  is  called  to  the  appended  letter  of  Mr.  Francis 
Ellershausen.  I'his  gentleman  is  entitleil  to  the  credit  of 
develo[)ing  the  copper-mining  industry  of  Newfoundland, 
and  of  bringing  it  to  its  present  prosperous  condition.  With 
admirable  pluck  and  energy  he  initiated  the  adventure  as  a 
personal  enterprise  in  the  fall  of  1.S74,  but  soon  after  two 
partners  joined  him,  and  ultimately,  in  the  fall  of  1878,  The 
Ik'tts  Cove  Mining  Company,  limited,  was  organized  by 
them.  Mr.  I^Uershausen  has  been  the  active  manager 
throughout  the  entire  time. 

There  are  also  appended  a  report  on  all  of  the  mines  at 
present  being  wrought  by  the  Company  by  Joseph  W. 
Revere,  M.  Iv,  a  report  on  the  Robert's  Arm  Mine,  by  T. 
Sopwith,  member  Inst,  C.  {].,  and  a  report  by  David  Ran- 
kine,  M.  E.,  on  the  Betts  Cove  mine. 


THh:    OlT-ICT.vL   R1<:P0RT   of    ALEXR.    MURRAY 

To  Sir  John  II.  Glover,  (iovernor  of  Newfoundland,  in 
1879,  shows  the  following  shipments  of  ores  from 
the  lietts  Cove  and  Little  Bay  Mines : 


^ll"^  I  Hetts  Cove  Mine 
'  '^/  5  ) 

1876,       "         "         •'     . 
J»/7, 

1878,       25,000 

1878,  Little  Hay  Mine       10,000 


Tons. 
8,000 

i  8,000 
44,000 

35,000 


^»ial£!M«S»«^i■jJii«^^«^yil*»»:"\'f'^;i'»^ 


Add  to  the  abmc  shipments  for 

i«79.  from   Hctts  Cove  and   Little 

"'^y  •  •         ■         .       30,000 

1880,  to  September  24,  Betts  Cove 

and  Little  Hay         .  .  24,000 

1880.  additional  tonnaj^e  on  hantl 
read)-  for  shipment  to  January 
'5.   ''"^^I  .  .  10,020 


As  follows : 

Little  Hay      . 

7.500 

Betts  Cove    . 

1.250 

Robert's  Arm 

1 ,000 

Southwest  Arm      . 

[50 

Nali's  Hay     . 

120 

T(-)tal  production 


169,020 


Net  vahie  of  ore  shipments,    November,    1878,   balance 
sheet,  taken  upon   formation   of  the   Betts  Cove  Co. 
Shows  105,000  tons  shipped,  at  net  value  .         $850,000 

(All  spent  on  construction  and  for  openin<,^  mines.) 
Net  value  of  shipment  in  1879,  30,000  tons       .         225,000 


Estimated   value   of   shipment  to   October,    1880, 
24,000  tons 


175.000 


Total  net  value 


$1,250,000 


The  ful!  market  value  of  the  metal  from  the  ti)tal  ore 
product  may  be  fairly  stated  i't  $3,500,000. 


i. 


10 


KSTIMATEIJ    PRI.:SKM    ki:Si:RVES. 

As    PER     REPOk!    OK    JOSKI'II    \V.    RkVERE,    M.    E. 


Little    Iky    Mine.   30.000   tons    per  aniuitn, 
X  years  aliead  ... 

Iktt-.  Cove  Mine.  «,ooo  tons  per  annum,  for 

5  \'ears 


250,000  tons. 


40,000    " 


Besides,  for  several   years.  650  tons  per  month  from  new 
workinj^^s. 


As    PI.;K    RkI'ORT    of   T     SoPWITH,    \[KMHKk    JxsT.    C.    E. 

Robert's  Arm   Mine,  4,000  tons  per  annum  for 

20  to  30  years,  say       ....        ,00.000  tons. 

(This  is   12  per  cent,  ore.) 

In  adch'tion.  prcxhicts  nil!  be  made  from  Mali's  Bay  and 
Southwest  Arm  Mines,  which  are  both  in  ore,  as  per  report 
of  Mr.  Revere. 


The  value  of  the  plant  at  the  different  mines, 

as  estimated  b>-  Mr.  Revere,  is   .  .        '   $3,4,680.00 

V.iluc  of  oo.uls  and  supplies  on  hand  .  206,132.00 

Net  value  of  shippini;  ..re  mi  hand     .  184.248.00 

tine.s  or  low  ^^rade  ore  at  Little  Ha\-    148,940.00 


Assets,   irrespective   of   value  of   the    workini^ 

mines  and  ,eal  estate  .  .  .        '    $854,000.00 

There  are  to  be  deducted  from  this  1,600  tons  of  ore 
uorth  about  $30,000  in  .Swansea,  to  which  the  13etts  CovJ 
Compan)'  is  entitled. 


1 1 


i.i:tti:k  oi-   francis  i:LiJ<;RsiiAUSKx. 


To  t!ie  Directors  of  the  Newfountllaiid  CousolUated    Copf>er 
.]fiiitiio  Coinpnny : 

(iKNTi  KMKN  ;    IViiiiit  inc  to  address  to   \oii  a  few  lines 
uix.n  the  character  of  the  jM-oceedin^rs  of  our  minin^r  advent- 
ure in    Newfoundland.       So    far   it   only  can    be  called   the 
initiation  of  a  mining  industr>-  in  that  country.      Our  minin<r 
district  is  situated   o\er  two  hundred  miles  distant  from  St. 
Johns,    uid    was   in   an  entirely    unbrok-en  country,  with   no 
r(jads  or  direct  means  of  communication  of  an>-  sort,  except 
by  vessels   especially  chartered,  and  tlurinj.^  four   months  of 
the  \'ear  we  would  have   been    entirely  cut  off  from  all  com- 
munication had  we  not  employed    Indians  as    mail  carriers. 
Now    we  have  succeeded   in  i,^etting  mail  steamers  to  call  at 
our  ports,  and   (io\ernment   mail  carriers  during  the  winter 
We    also     h.uc     telegraphic    communication    between     the 
various   mines  and    St.    Johns   snice    two    \ears.      The    only 
inhabitantN  in   this  district   were  a  feu   fishermen ,   therefore 
ue     had     to    import     laborers    <jf    ever>'    desciiption     from 
I'.ngland    and    America    at    an    enormous    expense.       Now 
thousands  of  \-oung   fishernu-n   ha\e  been  trained  as  miners 
and  other  skilled  laborers,  who  are  qm'te   equal  in    point  of 
workmanship  to   our  form(>r  laborers,  and  who,  at  the  same 
time,  work  for  nearl)-  ;o  per  cent.  less. 

Our  shipping  port-,  were  entirel\-  nnknovxn  to  the  mari- 
time worhl,  and  therefore  great  inducements  had  to  be  given 
to  obtain  sufficient  tonnage  for  our  requirements,  and  -learn- 
ers could  t)nly  be  obtained  by  giving  tinie  chartirs;  now 
Liverpool  lines  of  steamers  are  competing  for  our  trade, 
no  longer  on  time  charters,  but  on  freight  per  ton, 
which  is  nearl\-  a  difference  of  50  per  cent.  less.  Our 
Company  did  not  start  with  a  ready  working  capital  in 
hand,  <is  many  other  conii)anies  do,  Init  worked  its  way 
up  with  nothing  ni  hand  t..  its  present  magnitude  b>- 
applying  all  the  proceeds  to  a  series  of  ailvancements, 
by   prospecting   and    developing,  \vA    only  one    mine,  but  a 


12 


whole  milling  ilistrict,  as  you  must  frc\  conxinccd  fioin  tlir 
reports  of  the  experts.  Still  in  tlu  face  of  the  above-men- 
tioned {lifficiilties,  whit  li  now  lia\e  been  overcome,  we  would 
have  paid  over  one  milhon  two  liumlred  and  fifty  thousand 
dollais  of  (h"viilends  cUirin^^  the  six  years  of  operation,  if  the 
amount  spent  for  tht'  manifoKl  inijjrov  enients  had  been 
drawn  from  a  p.iid  up  working' capital ;  but  thai  \'ou  ma\' 
understand  niun'  full)  tlu'  luster)  Awd  tinaiuial  condition  of 
our  concern,  1  ma\  state,  in  1S74  I  -^t.irted  on  ni)  own 
account  the  Hi-tts  ( Ove  Mine,  but  soon  after  entered  into 
partnership  with  some  otlier  j^eiitK-nun 

in  Nov.,  1S7S,  we  formed  a  compaii)-.  limited,  but  with  the 
understandini,^  that  no  shares  should  be  sold  to  outsidi  rs 
beyond  the  number  of  sharehoklers  recpiireil  to  constitute  a 
limited  Comp.ui)-.  /"200,000  sterling;  of  stock  were  (li\  ided 
anK)nj4st  us  as  full)'  |)aid-up  shares,  which  shares  nprestuti'd 
at  that  time'  the  actual  outla\  ,  beiit''  n)(>ne\-  earned  b\-  the 
mines  Uss  the  sum  of  X30,ooo  storliui;  advanced  by  one  of 
the  partners;  since  then  tile  policy  of  still  enlar^iuL;  the  con- 
cern b\-  making  impro\'ements  and  developinjj;  new  mines  has 
been  continued,  ami  therefore  no  dividends  lia\  e  been  de- 
clared. Considerinjj;^  that  the  works  are  now  in  a  j^ood  con- 
dition, and  a  che.ij)  labor  market  bein^  established,  it  may 
easily  be  seen  th.it  in  future  lar^e  net  e.irnin^s  can  be 
divided,  .md  i);n'ticularly  so,  as  the  Robert's  Arm  Mine,  which 
was  m\'  person.il  \enture,  described  in  the  reports,  h.is  been 
added  to  the  other  properties.  The  statements  will,  I  think, 
<.iive  you  all  the  information  you  desire.  I  mii^ht  have  stated 
the  number  of  tons  of  copi)er  ore  mined  and  amount  of 
wagi;s  to  employes,  but  the  various  re|)orts  in  )-our  hands 
^■i\e  you  that  information,  as  well  as  to  the  probable  outj)ut 
and  expected  net  profits  of  the  future  operations.  I  may 
call  )'our  attention  the  fact  that  your  companv-  not  onl)' 
takes  the  property  without  one  tlollar  of  incumbrance  upon 
it,  but  on  tlie  contrary,  with  stores,  supplies  for  the  minuig 
population,  and  a  larj^e  amount  of  co])per  f)re  on  hand,  of  a 
net  value  of  over  $500,000  in  all. 

I    have  no   hesitation,  therefore,   in  stating   that   in   my 


jiulK^mcnt  the  net   profits  of  the  niiiic-s  sho..I.l  be  at  least 
$300,000  per  annum,  based  on  the  price  of  copper  at  lis  6fi 
per  nnit.  whicli  is  nu.eh  helou  the  average  price  that  copper 
has  sold  at  for  10  years  |)ast. 

Before  c.nch.din-    I  he-  to  call  >-our  attention  to  what  I 
consuler.  frcMn    n.>-  experience,  should    be  the  character  of 
your  future  .)perations.      As   the  mines  l,,:,,,;  urout^ht  are 
numer.uis.  .md   capable  of  pro<hh-in-  a  lar^.T  output' .it  less 
expense  than   fornurly.  you  nii-hi   feel  induce.l   to  increase 
shipments  much  beyond    fn.m  3^.000  to  40.000  tons    per 
annum,  but  this  I  do  not  consider  advisable,      Vou  can  smelt 
to  a  matte  as  cheaply  at  the  mines  as  thev  do  in  Su  ansea 
because  fuel  comes  out  from   JMi^rland  as  ballast,  an.l  uages 
are    actually   cheaper  in   Newfoundland    than    in    Swansea. 
With   this  object  in   view,  we  erected  :x  fc,v  cupola  furnaces, 
and  smelted  (lurin<,r  last  year  with  nn-at  success,  and  now  we 
have  started  the  erection  of  smeltin-  works  with  a  capacity 
of  100   tons   per   day.      The   necessary    material,    will,    the 
exception  of  the  machinery  for  blast,  is  now  on  the  'rvnuml 
I  would  again  refer  >'ou  to  Mr.  Kevere's  report,  in  which  he 
sho^\  s  the  advantages  of  smelting.     I  also  beg  to  direct  s'our 
attention   to  a  suggestion   which  I  think   is   \vorthv  of  your 
consideration.     You  find  from  description  in  the  reports  of 
the  Jiall's  Bay  district,  that  there  are  quite  a  number  of  local- 
ities, which,  in  all  probabilities,  will  becomi'  large  producers 
of  ore. 

During  the  last  three  \cars  we  have  been  prospecting  and 
sinking  shafts  in  that  dist.ict.  with  an  average  force  of  fifty 
men.  but  beynd  half  a  do/en  houses,  a  supplying  .store,  and  a 
wharf,  no  further  equipments  Ii,i\c-  Ik  en  made.  'I'o  complete 
the  plant  for  that  district  wouhl  c^ntail  an  (utlav  of  from 
$^00,000  to  $400,000.  It  appears  to  me  to  be  a  pit>'that  these 
v.-ilaable  properties  shouki  remain  unworked,  but  also  equally 
unwi.se  if  the  net  earnings  of  the  other  mines  shouki  again 
be  spent  for  fiirlher  enlargements  of  the  concern;  therefore. 
I  advise  that  either  ;i  part  of  the  Treasury  Shares  of  the 
company  should  be  sold  and  the  proceeds  applied  for  the 
completion  of  the  plant  of  the  1  bill's  Ha\'  Mines,  or  that  this 


T 


14 

district  should  he  sold  to  aiiotluT  i  omp. my  and  the  proceeds, 
whether  in  cash  or  sh.ires,  di\id(.(l  .imoii^^'st  tht  sliarclioiders 
of  \-our  oonipaiiw      I  ,1111,  licar  sirs,  yours  tnil\  , 

l'l<  \\(  I'-    I'.l  I  IK^II  M'SKN 

Nkw  ^  i.rk,   Ian    J 5,   iSHl 

7'o  the   Pirotors  of  the  Ncxvfoundland  Coii.solhtatai  Copper 
Minini^    C  otnpiviy. 

( il  \  I  I,i;mf.N  :  'I'lu-  cipiin^(l  of  vnui  (  (inipany,  Wlntr- 
way  6t  Jolmson.  Mstpiires,  ol  St  John,  Nru  toundlan<l,  h.i\i' 
certified  that  tlie  COnipany's  titlis  to  it^^  mining  proprrtirs 
are  in  all  casi-s  ^'01  xl,  in  their  opinion  W  c  havr  cvanunid 
the  documents  showin^i;  chain  of  title,  .md  the  ,il)str;iit,  An{\ 
are  of  opinion  that  the  titles  .iic  pcrfei'tl)   ;.;oo(i, 

K<'s|)LCtfull\'  yours,  Dwi.M'oKr  tS,    Li.Kns. 


Ri-:r()Rr  oi-  josi'.imi  \v   Kix'i.Kh:.  i:sy..  m.  [•: 

\i;\V    VnKK.   Januar.     19,    18S1. 

To  the  Direetors  of  the  SexcfoiiiieHcout  Coitsoliitated  Copper 
Miuitu;    Company  : 

I  res])ectfull\-  submit  the  following  rej^ort  on  some  of 
the  difl'erent  mines  of  \'our  company,  which  \\('re  exanu'nc(l 
by  me  durini;  the  months  of  July  and  AuiJ[ust.  1S80. 

Minin<^f  of  copper  ores  in  Newfoundland  was  first  bei;un 
at  Tilt  Cove,  in  1865.  This  propert>'  is  fifteen  miles  east  of 
Betts  Cove,  and  is  still  worked  by  one  of  its  orif,;in.il  owners, 
a  Mr.  Bennett,  of  St.  John.  Work  was  begun  at  Betts 
Cove  in  the  autumn  of  1874,  bv  Mr.  Francis  I'-Uershausen, 
and  since  then,  under  his  management,  have  been  oi)ened 
properties  at  Little  Bay,  Southwest  Arm.  Hall's  Bay  and 
Robert's  .Arm. 

The  proj)ertii's  of  \(iur  compan\'  <ire  situated  on  the  west 
side  of  Notre   Uame   B.iv,  which   is  on  the  nortli-cast  coast 


»s 


of  Ncutoiiiull. 111(1,  ,inil  230  niilcs  north  of  St  lohn.  the 
capital  (.f  till'  island  The  shon:  of  this  ha>  is  vir\'  hi^,'h 
and  rock)-,  thf  cliffs  in  many  places  risin.;  to  the  lu-ij^ht  of 
300  feet  above  the  si-a  Icv.'l,  Man>  dci-p  little  arms  rnn 
inland  fn.in  the  main  has  ami  form  excelU-nt  harbors  for  the 
lar^H'st  vtsscls.  'Vhc  snrn.nndinnr  lonntry  is  heavily  wooded 
with  spruce  and  birch. 

The  copper  veins  and  tleposits  are  found  in  the  rocks 
beionj^in^'  to  the  lower  Silurian  maf^nesian  s>  stem  The 
>4an^ue  of  the  ore  bi-ds  or  deposits  bein^^  chlorite  slate,  and 
the  coiintrs  rocks  for  the  most  p.irt  a  hard  diorite  The 
copper  ore  is  in  the  form  of  .,  yellow  sulpiniret.  aii.i  i>  dis- 
tributed in  veins  and  seams  through  the  slate.  These  seams 
vary  from  a  fraction  of  ,in  inch  to  inan\-  teet  in  width.  The 
ore  itse'f  is  especially  fre<-  from  .ill  impurities,  and  with 
sli{,du  hand  pi(kin'.r,  can  be  broii^dit  up  to  a  merch.int- 
ablc  article,  runninj^  from  cij,dit  tc)  sixteen  per  cent, 
of  metallic  copper.  The  production  of  Hrst-class  ore  is  at 
present  all  shipped  to  ICiij^dand  and  there  sold  to  the  smelters. 
I  he  lower  .grades,  or  ore  mi.\ed  with  }>[angues  so  as  to  require 
much  labor  or  machinerv  to  separate  it.  are  tor  the  most 
part  tlirown  upon  the  dumps.  Mm  at  one  of  the  mines  the 
lower  grade  ores  are  part  of  them  smelted  to  produce  a  low 
regiilus. 


MINIXG    T.WVS    OI-     XKWFOUXIJI.AXD 

Any  British  subject  can  claim,  on  lands  not  alread>- 
granted,  a  right  of  search  for  minerals  over  an  area  of  three 
square  miles  on  payment  of  ^5.  Within  two  years  of 
obtaining  it  he  must  select  from  these  one  square  mile  in  any 
rectangular  form,  provided  it  be  not  less  than  half  a  mile 
wide,  which,  on  the  paym.;nt  of  ^"10  and  government 
expenses,  is  given  as  a  grant.  The  other  two  square  miles 
lapse  to  the  government,  who.  at  one  time  or  another,  will 
sell  them  by  auction.  If  on  a  gr.uit  the  grantee  should 
expend  a  sum  of  not  less  than  ^^4.000  within  eleven  years, 
it  becomes  his  absolute  propert)-  in  perpetuit)-  in  fee  simple. 


1 


i6 


Aliens,  as  individuals,  cannot  hold  property  in  Newfound- 
land, but  only  as  a  body  corporated,  with  the  one  condi- 
tion that  two  directors  or  trustees  of  said  body  must  be 
subjects  of  tiie  crown. 

Your  company  is  now  workin^^  five  dififcrent  properties, 
namely  :  the  Betts  Cove  Mine,  Southwest  Arm  Mine, 
Litde  Bay  lYHne,  Hall's  Hay  Mine,  and  Robert's  Ann  Mine. 
They  are  all  worked  on  leases,  the  orii^nnal  lessees  havint; 
procured  grants  or  rights  of  search  from  the  government. 

The  leases  and  grants  controlled  h\'  your  company  are 
as  follows : 

Betts  Cove,  2  grants  ;  Burton's  Pond,  i  grant ;  South- 
west Arm,  2  grants  and  2  leases  ;  TJttle  Bay,  4  leases ; 
Hall's  Bay,  4  leases  ;  Robert's  ;\rm,  11  leases;  Seal  Baj-,  i 
lease. 

The  mines  which  I  examined  were  Betts  Cove,  Little 
Bay,  Whale's  Back,  which  is  a  portion  of  the  Little  Bay 
propcty.  Southwest  Arm,   Hall's  Bay,  and   Robert's  Arm. 


BETTS    C0V1-:    MINE. 

This  mine  is  located  on  very  high  ground,  three-quarters 
of  a  mile  west  from  an  arm  of  the  sea  called  Betts  Cove. 
Mining  operations  were  begun  here  in  the  autumn  of  1874, 
and  have  been  pushed  with  more  or  less  energy  since  that 
time,  the  result  being  that,  since  the  spring  of  1875,  110,000 
tons  of  co})per  ore  have  been  shipped  to  Lnglaml.  The  ore 
is  found  distributed  in  large  veins  through  an  immense  bed 
of  chlorite  slate.  This  slate  has  a  well-defined  strike  east 
and  west,  with  a  pcrpeuilicular  north  wall  of  diorite. 
Another  wall  has  not  '""een  found  under-ground,  akhough 
the  slate  bed  has  been  i)rospected  1  50  feet  in  width.  Dis- 
tributed through  this  slate  bed  are  detached  masses  of 
diorite,  and  surrounding  these  the  ore  seams  increase  in  size 
and  richness.  The  slate  bed  has  been  worked  U)  the  depth 
of  400  feet;  in  width,  65  feet,  and  in  length,  625  feet,  with 
shipping  ore  in  sight  in  carh  direction.     The  mine  at  the 


I 


17 


present  is  worked  through  a  perpendicular  shaft  I65  feet 
deep.  The  lower  portion  of  the  mine  being  approached 
from  that  level  by  an  incline  and  several  winzes. 

Thus  far  all  the  mineral  has  been  removed  b\-  underhand 
stoping,  leaving  occasional  floors  and  pillars.  At  the  time 
of  inspection,  the  bottom  of  the  mine  could  not  be  seen  on 
account  of  the  accumulation  of  water,  brought  about  by  the 
removal  of  the  pumping  and  hoisting  machinery  to  the 
present  shaft.  The  daily  flow  of  water  in  the  mine  is  not 
large,  as  four  hours'  pumping  out  of  the  twenty-four  will 
keep  it  clear.  Tn  the  breasts  of  the  upper  workings  good 
seams  of  ore  are  in  sight,  especially  in  a  drift  400  feet  east 
from  the  main  shaft.  An  estimate  of  the  amount  of  No.  I 
ore  in  sight,  in  fl(M>rs  and  pillars,  gave  over  40,000  tons. 
All  th.is  can  be  made  available  without  injury  to  the  develop- 
ment of  the  mine,  or  to  the  maintenance  of  the  present 
product,  which  is  over  650  tcuis  of  shipping  ore  jier  month. 

The  working  shaft  is  well  timbered  and  fitted  with  cage 
hoist.  The  hoisting  engine,  pump,  air  compressor  for  three 
drills,  are  in  perfect  condition  and  in  a  suitable  building 
The  other  surface  m;ichiner)-  consists  of  a  large  rotary  washer 
and  screen  and  two  power  jigs  for  concentrating  the  fine  ore. 
Steam  is  sufjplied  by  one  tubular  ard  two  flue  boilers.  Near 
the  mine  is  the  machine  shop,  foundry,  and  forge  of  the 
Betts  Cove  Mining  Co.  Here  all  the  iron  work  and  repairs 
for  the  different  mines  are  made,  and  the  capacity  of  this 
branch  is  trul\-  \\onderful.  I^\erything  in  the  shape  of  iron 
work-  is  done,  from  the  forging  of  the  smallest  bolt  to  the 
building  of  a  large  double  acting  air  compressor,  the  latter 
ha\  ing  been  built  here  last  winter  for  the  Little  Baj'  Mine. 
The  mine  is  connected  with  the  wharves  at  Betts  Cove, 
three-quarters  of  a  mile  distant,  by  .1  double  tracked  tram- 
way  and  two  inclines,  one  of  i.ooo  feet  and  the  other  of  600 
feet  in  length.  These  both  are  fitted  with  brake  houses, 
wire  roi)e,  etc.  The  tramwa\-  and  inclines  are  built  on 
trestle  work,  abo\e  snow  le\'el,  ami  are  laid  w  itli  6o-lb.  iron 
rails.  The  cars  are  of  the  h^nglish  mining  pattern,  and 
have  a  capacity  of  two  and  a  quarter  tons  each  of  ore.      At 


1 8 

the'   present   ti.ne.  t.o  men   and   boys  arc  ompIo^■ed   in  and 
about  this  mine, 

Retts  Cove   is  a   deep  arm  of  the  sea,  three-quarters  of 
a  m,)e   ,n   Ien<.th.     The   upper  .nd  of   it  is  protected   by  a 
breakwater,    and    is    hn..!  u.th   wharves    and    storehouses 
ihere   .s   roon,  f..,-  tuo  ocean   steamers  and  several  saihn^ 
vessels   to   load   at   the   .ame  time,      ( )n   the  eastern   side  of 
the  hr.rbor  a  stream  .,f  uater  pours  doun   through  a  sH^dn 
break    ,n    the   ch^        This     is    the  outlet  of    a   l^^e    pc^d 
which   has  an   elevation   of  ,00  feet  above  the   sea       ^t   a 
comparatively  sn.all  cost,  th,s  culd  be  made  to  furnish  300 
nj     for  an-  con,pres.or>,   etc.      Xorth-east,  upon  the   hicrh 
land   abc.ve    the    cove,   are   stron^,^   indications   r,f  a    bed  of 
copper-bearing    slate,   and   a   tunnel    is  now   being   run   (on 
contract)  fn,„,  the    head    of  the  cove    to    prospe.;  it       The 
managers    house,   co.npany   store,   ofif^ce,    church,    hospital 
laboratory,  nme  storehouses,  and  telegraph  are  located  at  the 
harbor,  and   between   here  and   the   mine  are    r6o  dwelling 
houses  for  work  people.      These  are  all  ,n  good  condition 


SOUTMWKST  .Ainr. 

This  property  ,s  located  three-quarters  of  a  mile  south  of 
^.  U.  Arrn.  which    ,s   a    deep    bay    ,8    miles    west   of  Be.ts 
t^ove.      rhe  land  nses  abruptly  on  both  sides  of  this  bay  to 
the  height  of  300  feet,  and   is  well  wooded.      The  formation 
■s  more    regular  than    at    Betts    Cove,  and   does  not  seem  to 
have    been    so    much    disturbed.      Work   was  begun  here  in 
U.e   uuuu,n  .1  ^,yH.     The  contour  of  the  surface  would  in- 
dicate that  the  bed  of  mmerali.ed  slate  extended  two-thirds 
;^a  mile  east   and   west,  and  was   seventy-  yards   in   width    ■ 
Ihere  are    several    other    locations    on    the    property  where 
prospecting  has  developed   beds  of  mineral,  but   as   yet   no 
great  amount  of  work  has  been   done   upon   them.      Surface 
p.-ospect,ng  IS  difficult,  owing  to   the  deposit  of  decomposed 
vegetable   mutter    tliat  overlays   the    rock    formation.      Two 
saaftsa,vbeu.g  sunk  next   to  the  soutlurn  wall   of  t^^^ 
b-1.      lh,s  wall.  oldH.nte,  and   dips  slightly  to  the  south 


19 


i 


The  main  ^li.ift  is  down  145  feet,  with  several  short  ilrifts 
riiniiin<^r  from  it.  Two  seams  of  ore  are  penetrated  h\  this 
work,  eacli  two  teet  in  width  and  live  feet  .ipart.  soo  tect 
east  of  this  shaft  thi-  other  is  beiiiL;  sunk.  It  is  now  ilown 
90  t(.  't,  and  [)rodiieinL;  ore  in  ]),i\in^  (|nantities  The  siiafts 
are  bodi  worked  l;v  hoise  whims.  lUv  woik  done  here 
had,  up  to  tlie  time  of  niv  inspection,  produced  1,100  tons  of 
shipi)in!,^(>re,  900  tons  of  which  had  been  sent  to  Swan  ea. 
The  mine  is  connected  witli  tiie  hit;h  -diore  of  S.  W,  Arm. 
!))•  a  L^ootl  wiiL^on  road,  antl  from  this  point  a  fine  double- 
trackeil  incHne,  <Soo  feel  in  lenj^th,  runs  down  to  the  wharf 
On  the  >,hore  at  tlie  heail  of  the  wharf  are  the  manaL;er's 
house,  stori.',  ai-,d  storehouse.  .\t  the  present  lime.  ^3  men 
and  bo\s  are  emploxed  on  this  properly. 


LIT  rid'.    HAY    MlNiv 

lliis  propeit}-  is  located  on  1  hiL;h  peninsula  between 
Indian  Hight  dm\  Little  Buy  It  ^  15  miles  south-west  from 
J5etts  Cove  ami  12  miles  scnith-east  of  S.  \V.  Ann.  Miniiif,; 
was  begun  here  in  the  summer  of  1S71S,  and  has  been  carried 
on  with  i^reat  \  igor  since  that  time.  The  copper  ore  is 
found  in  the  same  chlorite  slate  as  at  Hetts  Cove  and  .S.  W. 
Arm.  'I'he  surface  indicatii)ns  of  an  innnense  mineral  deposit 
were  \'ery  marketl,  a  cropping^  of  mundic  and  coppei-  pyrites 
being  exposed  for  1 ,000  feet  on  the  strike  of  the  slate  bed. 
I  he  course  of  the  slate  bed  is  east  ,uid  west,  and  extends 
two-thirtls  ol  a  mile  west  nf  the  present  \\orkin[4s.  ( )n  the 
south  a  ridye  of  liills  composed  of  the  country  rock  (diorite) 
rise  abruptl}  to  the  heiLjht  of  200  feet.  L iidcrL^round  this 
diorite  forms  the  southern  wall  of  the  slate  bed.  When  the 
property  was  first  openetl,  se\eral  thousand  tons  of  ore  weie 
taken  out  ncvir  tlu'  surface  where  the  outcrop  was  uncovered. 
Then  .S  shafts  were  st.irted,  from  So  to  150  feet  apart,  on  tlu: 
strike  of  the  bed.  By  means  of  these  a  system  of  underhand 
stoj)in_L;,  lea\'inrT  occasion.il  floors,  has  been  followed.  The 
stoi)e  is  33  feet  in  width,  and  at  the  bottom  of  shafts  Nos.  5 
antl  6  is  in    solid   uri ,  re<|uiring    hardly    an\-   pickint.j    before 


20 

shipment.  East  and  west  .Irifts  arc  bein^  run  at  th.  drnth 
of  200  feet  to  open  ncu-  ground,  and  they  are  all  pnnh.cing 
good  ore.  Masses  of  diorite  occur  in  places  through  the  slate 
bed  but  arc  not  of  great  extent,  and  are  ahvavs  surrounde.i 
by  bod.es  of  rich  ore.  Xorth  of  the  stopes  the  bed  l,as  been 
prospected  160  feet,  and  seams  of  ore  found  the  uhole  dis- 
tance. At  this  point  the  conformation  of  the  surface  u-uld 
md.cate  that  a  n<,rt!i  uall  would  not  be  found  short  of  k^o 
»oct  from  the  line  of  shafts.  The  .nonth])-  production'  of 
siiippmg  ore  is  :;,ooo  tons. 

By   the    erection   of   additional    hoisting   machinery  the 
producfon  can  easily  be  doubled.     The  hoisting  fro.n  'shafts 
^^s.  6  and  7  IS  done  by  a  double  cylinder,  bo  H    P   en-nne 
^-nd  from   No.  5  by  a  40  H.  V.  engine.      There   is  but   little 
water  m  the  mine,  and  this  is  taken  out  in  the  buckets     The 
rock  and  ore  is  first  broken  and  p.cked   hv  hand   on  a  lame 
floor  at  the  mouth  of  the  shafts.      Two-thirds  of  all  the  o'^e 
brought   to   t],e    surface  is    No.    ,.    8    per  ct.   copper      The 
waste   rock   goes  to   the   dump.      The   mixed  ore   and  fines 
which  require  more  careful  separation,  are  conveved  to  the' 
wash  liouse.      Here  are   screens  and  two  large  rotary  wasli- 
mg  cylinders.      The   rock  is   passed  througii   these,  ind  the 
No.   I  ore  is  picked  out.      The  dumps  are  all  overhauled  by 
contract  ror   No.   r    ore.      fn   fact  all  picking  and  sorting  of 
the  ore  is  done  by  confact  at  a  very  low  figure.     Of  course 
immense  dumps  of  rock  and  fines,  containing  considerable 
ore.  have  accumulated   near  the  mine  and  wash  house     The 
mine  is  connected  with  the  wash  house,  the  smelting  works 
and  the  wharf  at  Little  Ra>-.  by  a  tramway-  and   incline  of 
4,600  feet  in  length,      Tliis  is  well   built  and  laid  with  6o-lb 
rails.      Ihe  cars  are   like  those  used   at    Iktts  Cove,  an.l  are 
drawn  up  the  grade  by  horses.      On  the  line  of  the  tramway 
are   many  of   the  laborers'   houses  :   these  all   belong  to  the 
-mnany  and  are  in   good   condition.      The  smelling  works 
•       '.'pon   an    elevation    near   the  wharf,   and  contain   three 
ir- w::  matting  furnaces.     These  are  run  on  the  louer  grade 
-'  ■    '\  and  can  reduce  10  tons  each  in   24  hours.      Hetuecn 
the  smelting   works  and   the    mine  are   two   ponds    uhich 


F 


' 


: 


LITTLE  BAY  MINE 

fhnshomn^  locoilion  ar.d  de/pi%  of  shafts 
orulheTniTural  deposit. 

JOS£fH  W.RE]i[ltE 


hm 


so' 


21 

uould  sn|)i.l\-  plenty  of  water  for  concentrating   works  and 

iniprove.l    water  jacket  furnaces.       The  wharf  is   well  built. 

nul  has  fronta^re  enou^rh  for  the  lar^rcst  oc  ....  steamers.  It 
is   sui)i)lie(l   with    ^^ooiX    loadin^^  sta^a\s.  tracks,    6;-c.      Little 

n.i\-  is  almost  landlocked,  and  forms  a  tine  lurbor.  At  the 
lu-'.'d  of  the  wharf  is  a  duni])  for  the  shijjpin-r  ore.  At  the 
time  of  the  inspection  there  were  3,000  tons  of  ore  upon  it, 
M\i\  a  lar^-^e  iron  steamer  was  dischar.c[int;  coal  it  the  wh.irf. 
At  the  heatl  of  Indian  Bij,dit,  one-half  a  mile  north  of  the 
Little  Bay  mine,  is  the  principal  town.  Here  is  the  man- 
ager's house,  the  store,  local  offices,  i)ost  office.  teleL,^raph, 
church,  and  miners'  houses.  There  is  also  a  <,H.od  wharf 
where  the  mail  steamers  huul. 

1  attach  a  plan  of  the  Shafts  on  the  Little  \\,\\-  property. 
The  plan  shows  the  8  shafts  sunk  on  the  strike  of  the  de- 
posit. 

Those  marked   5—6—7  are   the  ones  from   which  most 
of  the  product  was  beiuLj  taken  at  the  time  of  my  inspec- 
tion.     .At  No.  2  (Frenchman '.s)   the  deposit   is  now  clipping 
mto    the   hill   towards  the  south.       The  principal  Stones  at 
Nos.  5—6—7  are  about  35   feet  wide  from  the  south  wall  of 
the  dei)usit.      North  of  these   Stojics  the  deposit  ha^  been 
prospected  about  160  feet  and  ore  found  the  whole  distance. 
As  there  is  no  re.ison  to  suppose  that  the  deposit  does  not 
extend  many  hundred  feet  below  the  iiresent  workini^s   and 
the  Sulphurcts  having  increased  in  densit\'  and  richness  as 
a  greater  depth  has  been  attained,  1  calculate  that  the  blocks 
of  ground    marked  b\-  ./^>/Av/ lines  will   yield  at  least  200  000 
tons  of  marketable  ore.     Then  as  the  ground  on  the  exten- 
sion  of  the  deposit   east  and   west    of  the   line  of  shafts   is 
equall)-  rich   and  known   to  extend  a  long  distance,  I  con- 
sider it  safe  to   say  that  the   Mine   is  capable  of  producing 
in    the    future    at    least    250,000    tons    (jf   marketable    ore. 
which  ma\'   fairly   be  considered  as   the  amount  of  present 
reserves.      It  is  impo.ssible  to  calculate  the  exact  extent  of 
this  wonderful  deposit  of  Copper  Sulphurets,  but  it  is   un- 
doubtedly to-day  one  of  the  largest  ever  opened,  and  is  likely 
to  last  for  years  to  come. 


p" 


"X. 


cfoy  '>f'^<^^9*^of  Nv 


cfoyjl^:^?^^^  n^lh 


i  I 


22 


wii  \ij:s  wmk. 

Tilts  is  a  now  location,  2^4  miles  west,  and  inland  from 
the  Little  Ma\'  mine-,  It  was  oni\'  discovered  a  few  months 
since,  ami  thus  far  the  only  work  done  u[)on  it  has  beiii  to 
ditch  and  prospect  the  surface.  Hut  this  alone  has  tlemon- 
strated  that  there  is  an  enormous  hul  of  copper  hearing 
slate  on  the  property.  It  has  luiii  nncovcnd  at  intiMvals 
of  200  yards  iu  leuj^t'i  and  too  \anU  in  width,  and  wliere- 
ever  the  slate  has  been  exposed,  it  (imt.iins  siams  of  copper 
sulphurets.  In  an\-  other  Iocalit\-  this  woidd  he  looked 
upon  as  the  prospect  for  a  lart^e  mine,  ,nid  in  many  respects 
the  surface  showing.;  is  superior  to  th.it  at  Hi.-tts  C'ovi-  and 
lattle  \)[{y  The  tounlry  is  (|uit<  hil!\-,  and  co\iTed  with 
timber  suit.djle  for  buildinj^  and  uiiiiin;^  purposes.  Tlu.re 
is  a  l;oo(I  ^lade  for  tramwa>'  or  road  to  tlu'  shorr  of  Little 
l^av,  I  [^  miKs  distancr,  where  the  shipping;  point  vould 
have   to   lie. 

II.XLL'S   I'.AN 

This  is  a  district  b\-  itst'lf,  ^  miles  west  and  inland  from 
the  head  of  Little  Hay.  Copper  ore  was  first  discovered  in 
IiSjS,  but  little  work  has  been  doui'  upon  it  until  within  the 
present  v'car.  Tiu'  couutr_\-  is  luavily  womlrd,  .\nA  the  soil 
(juite  deep,  so  that  prospe'CtiiiL;  is  carried  011  with  threat 
difificulty.  Hut  where  work  ha.-^  been  done,  xciy  llattt'rin^' 
results  ha\e  been  obtaiiie(l  Thr  t'ormation  is  the  ^ame  as 
at  Little  Ha\-  and  \Vlel^■'^  b.'ck.  Heds  of  chlorite  slate, 
with  seams  of  cojiper  .udnhwrets,  and  the  country  rock  of 
hard  diorite.  I'"i\'e  diftc'etvi:  localities  .\vr  worthy  of  special 
mention,  but  mineral  has  been  found  in  m.in\  other  places. 
and  only   lacks  devclopm<'nt. 

L.\I)N  1V)\'I).  —  Hire  onl\-  a  few  prospect  holes  have 
been  opened,  but  they  all  show  mineral.  At  one  point  near 
the  pond,  copjier  sulphurets  crop  above  the  surface  for 
many  yards.  Ihis  is  now  bein^  thorouijhly  opened.  Near 
this  is  also  a  6-ineh  vein  of  peacock  coppiT,  but  as  the  for- 
mation is  much  disturbed,  its  \alue  is  questionable 


i 


i  I 


23 

COFI'I.K  Ull.l.. — A  nunilu'r  of  prospect  holes  and 
ditches  liavc  been  sunk  at  tliis  point,  a\m\  they  all  show 
mineral  in  slate.  The  southern  boundary  of  this  bed  i>.  well 
marked  b\   a  hi;4h  tid^fe  of  the  coiintrv   rock. 

No.  I,  New  Mink. —  This  is  a  well-defined  bed  of  slate, 
carryin{,'  strong  seams  of  copper  sulphurets.  Its  width  is 
30(5  feet,  and  it  has  been  prosjK-cted  lor  i  'j  miles  east  and 
west.  On  the  north  side  of  this  bed  a  shaft  is  bein;;  sunk  ; 
it  is  now  down  90  feet,  and  iias  been  in  ore  from  tlu'  surface. 
At  the  depth  of  60  teet  a  crosscut  is  beiii-^  driven  in  ore, 
and  is  now  in  30  feet.  In  sinking;  .uul  driving  there  have 
been  t.ikcii  out  100  tons  of  first-class  ore.  The  sulphurets 
from  this  bed  an-  especially  rich,  .md  easily  pick  to  15  per 
cent,  copper. 

^X\V  I'll.  —  At  this  point  a  shaft  is  down  30  feet  in  a 
slate  formation,  at  the  foot  of  a  high  hill,  and  01  c  enough  is 
taken  out  in  sinking  to  |)ay  all  expenses. 

Old  Mines. — Considerable  work  was  ilone  here,  princi- 
pally drifting,  when  the  district  was  first  discovered,  in 
1878,  and  some  ore  produced,  but  during  ihe  p.ist  year  no 
work  has  been  done.  We're  there  not  so  many  more  attract- 
ive  prospects  in   the  district,  this  would   be   looked    ui)on  as 

worth  opening. 

(3n  the  shore  of  Halls  Bay  a  wharf  is  almost  completed. 
Here,  also,  is  the  manager's  house,  store,  and  about  100 
tons  of  ore  waiting  shipment.  The  Hall's  Bay  district  is 
destined  to  have  a  brilliant  future,  and  produce  some  large 
mines.  Tlie  present  work  should  be  carried  on  until  another 
year,  and  then  a  tramwa>-  built  to  tide-water  on  Hall's  Bay. 
There  is  an  abundance  of  timber  and  water  on  the  property. 

ROBERT'S    ARM     MINE. 

This  mine  is  15  miles  south  of  the  Little  Bay  mine,  and 
about  1.V4  miles  from  Robert's  Arm  or  Inlet.  The  surface 
of  the  countr)-  is  covered  with  timber  suitable  for  mining  or 


m 


24 

building  purposes,  and  for  fuel.  The  mine  is  situated  on 
the  north  shore  of  a  large  fresh-uatcr  pond.  fi-oni  uhieh  it 
can  command  ample  water  pouer.  about  i  .^o  feet  above  the 
sea  level.  There  is  found  here  much  the  same  formation  of 
the  country  rock  as  at  1  Jail's  Bay,  Little  Hay.  etc.,  but  the 
copper  sulphurets  are  found  in  a  true  fissure  vein  of  great 
strength.  One.quarter  of  a  mile  south  of  tlie  main  work- 
ings a  shaft  has  been  sunk  64  feet  on  a  12-inch  vein  of  yel- 
low sulphuret  mixed  with  copper  glance.  Three-qtiarters 
of  a  mile  west  a  shaft  is  down  14  feet  on  a  4-fool  vein  of 
quartz,  carrying  12  inches  of  yellow  sulphuret  mixed  uitli 
galena.  Both  of  these  are  on  different  veins  from  the  one 
first  describee!. 

Up  to  the  time  of  my  inspection,  there  had  I, -en  raised 
in  all  from  this  j)roperty  700  tons  of  12  per  cent,  ore  and 
1,000  tons  of  lower  grade.  Further  exploration  should  be 
made  east  and  west  of  the  present  woi  kings,  the  indications 
being  extremel)'  favorable.  And  here  is  also  every 
reason  to  suppose  that  there  are  other  \eins  parallel  to  the 
one  worked  at  present.  This  is  indeed  a  most  valuable 
property,  and  the  question  of  its  permanency  is  bej-ond 
doubt. 

At  the  head  of  the  pond  bef(u-e  mentioned,  there  has 
been  built  a  mill  f(v  concentrating  the  lower  grade  ores. 
This  mill  ccuitains  15  head  <T  stami)s  and  2  rotary  pulver- 
izers. All  that  is  required  to  put  it  in  running  order  are  a 
few  Jigs  tor  separating  the  crushed  ore.  Power  is  supplied 
to  the  mill  by  a  200-hor.se-power  turbine  wheel,  taking 
water  from  a  river  through  a  fine  flume  400  feet  long.  The 
rock  and  ore  can  be  transported  to  the  mill  b\-  water  in 
large  scows. 

The  mine  is  connected  with  the  wharf  at  Robeit's  Arm 
by  a  tramwa)-  built  on  trestle  work,  .ibove  snow  level. 
Near  the  wharf  are  the  managcM-'s  house,  store,  etc.  The 
harbor  is  a  fine  one,  3m\  almost  landlocked.  I'f.r  a  more 
detailed  description  of  this  property,  I  refer  to  the  able 
report  made  by  T.  Sopwith.  in  January,  18S0. 


25 

MANAGEMENT. 

Each  of  the  different  mines  described  has  its  own  local 
niaii;)i;cr,  office,  store,  &c.  This  is  necessary,  as  they  are 
separated  Irom  each  other  by  at  least  15  miles,  and  the  only 
communication  is  by  water.  Little  Ba)\  Ik'tts  Cove,  and 
South  West  7\rm  are  connected  b\'  telegraph  with  each 
othcf,  and  with  St.  John  and  the  Atlantic  cable. 

The  company  employ  two  surgeons,  and  have  a  ho.spital 
at  Betts  Cove.  A  magistrate  and  pol'ce  are  provided  by 
the  Ciovernment  of  the  Island.  From  the  opening  of  navi- 
gation in  the  spring  until  the  1st  of  January,  the  mails  are 
brought  by  a  steamer  from  St.  John  every  ten  days. 
During  the  winter  they  are  brought  overland  by  sledge. 

SUPPLIES. 

This  portion  of  Newfoundland  being  so  isolated,  the 
question  of  supplies  is  imi)ortant.  Most  of  the  mining 
goods  are  brought  from  I'^ngland,  but  the  provisions  and 
store  goods  come  from  tht-^  United  States  and  Canatla.  The 
Betts  Cove  Alining  Co.  carry  on  all  the  stores,  and  in  the 
course  of  a  >'ear  sell  about  $200,000  worth  of  goods,  at  a 
profit  of  25  per  cent.,  which  is  equi\alent  to  a  discount  of 
that  amount  upon  the  wages  paid. 

LABOR, 

This  can  be  obtained  in  any  required  quantity,  ;uh1  the 
[)h)-sical  standard  of  the  workmen  surf)asses  that  of  the 
average  Cornish  miner.  The  wages  now  paid  a\erage  from 
90  cents  for  ordinary  laborers  to  $1.50  for  skilled  miners. 
Wages  are  not  likelv  to  increase,  as  the  suppl)'  of  labor  on 
the  island  far  exceeds  the  demand.  A  single  man  can  live 
for  about  $10  per  month,  and  a  family  tor  $18. 

LUMBER,  FUEL,  ^c. 

Mining  timber  is  abundant. 
Large  stulls,  16  ft.  by  18  in.   .         .  .    $i  each. 

Lagging  poles,  16  ft.  hjng      .  -5  e*ents  each. 


26 


Sawed  lumber 

Firewood 

Charcoal 

Coals 

Coke 


$14  per  M. 

$1  per  cord, 

6  cents  per  bushel. 

$2  per  ton. 

$4   per  ton. 

Coals  and  coke  are  brought  as  ballast  by  steamers  com- 
ing for  ore  cargoes. 

The  ores  melted  at  Little  Ba_v  are  low  grade,  picked 
from  the  richer  ores  and  the  dumps.  The  dumps  are  very 
extensive,  the  most  of  the  rock  in  them  being  chlorite  slate, 
charged  with  sulphurets,  and  will  assay  about  4  per  cent,  cop- 
per. The\-  are  put  into  the  furnaces  without  being  roasted, 
to  liberate  a  portion  of  the  sulphur,  and  but  little  attention 
is  paid  to  a  proper  mixture  of  ores  and  fluxes.  The  fur- 
naces are  poorly  constructed,  and  of  small  capacity.  Still 
a  profit  is  made  on  smelting.  As  Little  Bay  is  the  largest 
producer  of  these  low  grade  ores,  and  also  a  central  point  in 
the  district,  it  would  be  the  best  place  to  erect  extensive 
smelting  works.  Blast  furnaces  of  the  most  improved 
American  pattern  should  be  built,  the  ores  roasted  in  heaps, 
and  then  smelted  with  the  more  silicious  ores  from  Robert's 
Arm.  A  careful  estimate  of  the  cost  of  smelting  works 
to  treat  2,000  tons  per  month  shows  that  they  could  be 
built  for  $12,000. 

Estimated  cost  of  reduction  to  a  20  per  cent,  regulus,  of 
2,000  tons  5  per  cent,  ore : 

Picking     from     dumps    and 

roasting,  $2  per  ton  .  $4,000 
Smelting,  $2.75  per  ton  .  5,500 
I'reight  and  sale  of  450  tons 

•       3,217 


regulus 


Royalty 


$12,717 
720 


Value  of  450  tt)ns  of  20  per 
cent,  regulus  in   luigland 

Leaving  a  profit  of 


-$13,437 
24.750 


$11, 3>3 


27 

Assays  of  ore  samples  taken  in  the  dilTerent  mines: 
Little   Bav,  taken   at   random  in   the     ) 


S 


ijro  per  ct.  copper. 
-6  10 


■^Md 


ore  bed     

Betts  Cove 

Mall's  Bay,  from  N(,).   i,  new  mine   . 

South  West  Arm,  from  both  veins  .      .      iS^o 

Robert's  Arm,  picketl  ore  from  main  vein,     2i<f„  " 

These   assa\s   are   <^iven   t<>  show  that  tiie  ores  can  be 
picked  to  a  much  hi<4her  s;rade  than  they  are  at  [)resent. 

Cost  of  production  of  shipping  ores,  per  ton  : 

Little  Bay,  8  per  ct.  copper,  landed  on  wharf      .     .      $7.83 
Betts  C'ove,  10  per  ct.     "  "  .     .        9.42 

Robert's  Arm,  12  per  ct.  "  "  .     .      10.00 


SHIFMKNI'    OF    (.)RKS. 

Ore  can  be  shipped  b\'  steamer  or  sailing-  vessel  during 
eight  months  of  the  year,  the  other  four  months  the  harbors 
are  closed  by  the  drift  ice  from  the  north.  Shipments  are 
made  either  to  Swansea  or  Li\'erpool,  where  they  are 
crushed  and  sampled.  At  present,  none  of  the  ores  are 
sampled  at  the  mines,  but  are  shipped  as  they  come  from 
the  ore  floors 

The  rate  of  freight  from  the  mines  to  i'lngland,  is  for 
steamers    19.V.,  and  sailing  vessels  1  5.s-.  per  ton. 

COST  OF   MARKFTINC.  ORLS. 


Freight  by  steamer 
Sampling,  crushing,  &c.  . 
Change  into  tons  of  2  1  cut. 
Insurance        .... 
Commission  ^  i)er  cent,  on  \  alue 
Flarbor  dues  .... 

Per  ton. 


9.V. 

$4. 56 

I.V. 

Gd. 

.36 

-s. 

1.68 

\s. 

6d. 

•36 

U 

.  10 

4^^ 

d. 

.09 

$715 


28 


The  Newfoundland  copper  ores  will  always  find  a  ready 
market  at  the  English  smelting  works,  as  they  contain 
elements  that  act  as  fluxes  on  ores  imported  from  many 
other  localities.  They  cannot  at  present  be  brought  to 
the  United  States,  because  of  the  tariff  imposed  upon 
foreign  ores  ;  but  should  this  be  removed,  a  large  market 
would  be  opened  here. 

Highest  and  lowest  prices  of  copper  ores  and  regulus  in 
tlie    Swansea   market,   during  the  past  three  years  : 


i4s. 


1879. 
—  I  ox.  6c/. 


i<^78-                           1877. 
'3-i"- 1  r.^-.       14s.  ()d. \2s.  per  unit. 


Swansea  prices  of  ores  and  regulus  on   the  first  day  of 
each  year  during  the  past  ten  years  : 

1 87 1  •  •  •         \2s.       per  unit. 

1872  .  .         17^.  "       .. 

1873  .  .  18.V.  "  " 
i«74  •  .  .  i6.i-.  6d.  "  " 
i^75         •         .         .         i6s.  gd.  "       " 

1876  .  .  .  17.?.  "       " 

1877  .  .  .  i5i-.  ed.  " 

1878  .  .  .  13^-.  3,/.  ..      '. 

1879  .  .  .  i\s.  6d.  " 

1880  .  .  .  14^-. 

The  value  of  ores  given  in  the  report  are  calculated  at 
1  \s.  6d.  per  unit,  which  is  below  the  average  price  of  copper 
for  the  past  ten  years. 

Present  monthly  production  of  Ik-tts  Cove  and  Little 
Bay  mines  : 


Betts  Cove,  650  tons  of  10  per  cent,  cop- 


per ore  .... 

Cost  of  mining  .  $6,123 

Freight  and  sale         .  .      4,647 

Royalty,  2s.  per  ton    ,         .         312 


$17,875 


$1 1,082 


$6,793 


29 


Little  "Bay,  3,000  tons  of  8  per  cent,  cop- 
per ore $66,000 

Cost  of  mining  .  $23,460 

Freight  and  sale         .         .    21,450 
Royalty,  ^d.  per  unit  1.840 

$46,750 


Profit  for  one  month 


$19,250 


$26,043 


Profit  for  one  year  .  .  .  .  •        $316,516 

25  per  cent,  profit  on  $180,000  of  store  goods 

sold 45.000 


Total  profit  ov\  both  mines 


$361,516 


The  amount  of  ore  produced  from  all  the  mines  in  1880 
was  over  30,000  tons,  and  there  is  no  reason  that  vith  the 
present  outlook  at  Little  Bay,  and  the  new  development 
at  Hall's  Bay  and  Whale's  Back,  another  >ear  this  pro- 
duction should  not  be  doubled,  if  desired. 


ESTIMATED    VALUE    OF    PLANT,  SEPT    i,    1880. 


Betts  Cove  mine 

£32,s^3 

Southwest  Arm  mine 

.        .      1,843 

Little   Ba\-                  .          . 

.    21,982 

Hall's  Bay       , 

128 

Robert's  Arm 

6,400 

^62,936 


$314,680 


This  estimate  does  not  include  supplies  not  in  use,  stocks 
in  stores,  or  value  of  the  mines. 

This  plant  originally  cost  over  $500,000. 


30 


ORKS  OX   HAXD  READY  TO  SHIP.  SI-IT. 

S.  West  Arm.  200  ions,  i  f  pvr  cent,  copper,  $6,050 

Hairs   Bay,  200  tons,  12  per  cent,  c.pper.  6,600 

Robert's  Arm,  700  tons,  i  2  percent,  copper.  23. 100 

Little  Bay,  3,000  ic:ys,  8  per  cent,  copper.  66.000 


I.    1S80. 


Royalty,  frei^rht  and  sale 


$101,750 
32,487 


-$69,263 

Estimated  value  of  tines  at  Little  Ba)-,  40.000  tons  con- 
cent.-, ted  to  14,000  tons  of  8  per  cent,  copper: 


Com  o»  v-oncentration         ,  .   $50,000 

Ereic^ht,  royalty  and  sale    .  .    109,060 


$308,000 


-$i  59.060 


Actual  value 


$148,940 


SUPPLIES  Ox\   HAXD. 

Stocks  in  stores  at   Betts  Cove,  Little    Bav,  South- 
west Arm  and  Hall's  Bav  '  *,  ,n  -n- 
Supplies,  stocks  in  stores  at  Robert's  Arm      .          .        7,000 


Yours,  respectfully,  $680,588 

Jo.sEPH  VV.  Revere,  M.   E. 


Xew  York,  jaii.  2i;,t,  1881. 
7o  the  Board  oj  Directors  of  the  Xeiofnundlaud  C  C.  M.  Co. 
Gentle.MEX  :    I    enclo.se    with    this   an   estimate   of  the 
value  of  goods,  supplies,  and  shipping  ore  on   hand  at  the 
mines  at  the  present  time.      My  figures  are  based  on  official 
information  receixcd  within  the  past  {qw  days. 
I  remain,  \ours  respectfull)-, 

JosEi'ii  W.  Revere,  M.  L. 


i 


31 


Goods  find  supplies  on  hand,  Jan.  2  1st,  l88i  : 


Hctts  Cove      . 
Little  Bay 
S.  W.  Arm     . 
Robert's  Arm 
Hall's  Bav      . 


Marketable  Ore 


^24,760  ciirroncy 

20,000 

1,922 

3,000 

I,8qi 


^'5 1,533  =  $206,132 


Little  Bay      •     •     •     ■     •     •     •  7- 5 00  tons. 

Robert's  Arm 1,000     " 

Betts  Cove 1,250     " 

S.  W.  Arm 150     " 

Hall's  Bay 120     " 


10,020  tons. 


Value   in   Swansea  at  present  prices  after  }    ^ 
deductmg  royalty,  freight,  sale,  etc.     .  )    ^ 
Value  of  fines  at  Little  Ba)-,  as  per  report  148,940 

$539,320 


REPORT  OF  T.  SOPWITH. 


6  Great  George  Street,  Westminster,  S.  W'., 

5th  January,  r88o. 

Messieurs  The  Nezufoundland  Minerals  Company,  limited. 
Gentlemen : 

ROBERT'S  ARM  MINE. 

I  beg  your  acceptance  of  the  toUovving  report  upon  this 
mine,  which  was  inspected  in  accordance  with  your  instruc- 
lions  in  November  last. 


32 

Position. — The  mine  is  on  the  west  side  of  Notre  Dame 
Bay,  on  the  east  coast  of  X..nvfotindlancl,  about  2  miles  from 
Robert's  Arm  Bi-ht  or  Inlet.  It  is  250  miles  north  of  St. 
John,  the  capital  of  the  island. 

TopocK  \riiic.\i.  AND  Geoi.dcicai.  Cn\i)rii,,Ns.— The 
surface  of  the  adjoininj^r  country  is  densely  covered  with 
timber  and  underwood,  suitable  for  buildin-  and  mining 
purposes  and  for  fuel.  The  mine  is  situated  on  the  north 
shore  of  a  lar-e  fre.sh-water  lake,  from  which  it  can  command 
ample  water  power,  about  130  feet  above  sea-level. 

The  copper  vein  and  deposits  are  found  in  the  rocks 
belonginj^r  to  the  lower  Silurian  magnesian  sj-stem  ;  the 
general  characteristics  of  which  at  Robert's  Arm  are  identi- 
cal with  those  of  Tilt  Cove,  Betts  Cove,  Little  Ba)-.  and 
other  mines  successfully  worked  on  the  opposite  shore  of 
Notre  Dame  Ba>'.  the  two  last  named  b>'  the  \-endor  of 
Robert's  Arm  mine. 

These  copper  bearing  rocks  extend  and  are  worked  still 
further  south  of  Robert's  Arm,  and  the  district  is  even  now. 
perhaps,  one  of  the  most  important  in  its  copper  production 
known  at  the  present  time,  and  is  capable  of  still  greater 
development. 

The  Robert's  Arm  mine  is  on  a  true  \-ein  of  great 
strength,  with  marked  indications  of  gr<  at  mineral  wt^alth. 
It  dips  south  at  an  angle  of  34  degrees,  is  three  feet  thick  at 
surface,  and  increases  to  15  feet,  at  a  depth  of  100  teet. 
The  principal  matrix  is  quartz,  intermixed  n  places  with 
chloritic  slate,  and  the  foot-wall  carries  a  Wnv  leader  of  rich, 
yellow  co[)per. 

The  direction  of  the  vein  is  east  and  west,  and  there  arc- 
indications  of  other  veins  in  the  immediate  vicinity.  Short!_\- 
previous  to  the  inspection  on  which  this  report  is  based,  a 
disccn-er)-  was  made  of  a  promising  vein  about  a  (|uartu-  of 
a  mile  to  the  south  of  the  principal  and  only  one  on  which 
any  explorations  have  been  made. 


33 


MINING  LAW  OF  NEWFOUNDLAND. 

This  has  been  drawn  up  in  a  liberal  spirit,  and  is  well 
calcidatcd  to  develop  the  mining  resources  of  the  country; 
the  cfifect  of  a  liberal  policy  is  seen  in  the  gigantic  stritles  of 
the   tnining  industry  within  the  last  lO  years. 

Any  British  subject  can  claim  on  lands  not  already 
granted  a  right  of  search  for  minerals  over  an  area  of  3 
square  miles  nn  payment  of  ^5.  Within  2  years  of  obtain- 
ing it  he  must  select  from  these  one  square  mile  in  an\' rect- 
angular form,  provided  it  be  not  less  than  half  a  mile  wide, 
which,  on  payment  of  ^,"10  and  government  expenses,  is 
given  as  a  grant.  The  other  two  square  miles  lapse  to 
Government,  who  at  one  time  or  another  will  sell  them  by 
auction. 

If  on  a  Grant  the  concessionaire  should  expend  a  sum 
of  not  less  than  ^4.000  within  1  I  years,  it  becomes  his  ab- 
solute property  in  perpetuit\'  in  fee  simple. 

At  Robert's  Arm  a  right  of  search  has  been  acquired 
over  33  square  miles  of  ground,  two  square  miles  of  which 
are  now  the  absolute  pr(,)perty  of  the  company. 


at 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PROPI-RTY. 

Under  the  title  of  the  Robert's  Arm  Mines  33  square 
miles  of  countrN'  arc  granted  under  riL;ht  o(  search,  and  of 
these  2  stpiare  miles,  embracing  the  workings  already  exe- 
culrd,  are  the  absolute  property  of  Captain  Clery,  who  has 
leased  them  to  the  Newfoundland  Minerals  Company  at  a 
Royalty  of  q.v.  (five  shillings)  per  ton  of  ore  extracted 
on  a  minimum  production  of  3,000  tons. 

The  charge  for  Royalty  will  not  apply  to  future  discov- 
eries matle  on  properties  other  than  those  leased  from  Cap- 
tain   Clery. 

The  New  foundland  Minerals  Company  will  also  possess 
rights  of  search  over  other  properties  in  Conception  Bay,  on 
one  of  which  three  veins  have  already  been  disco\ered. 

Miniu"  works   at  Robert's   Arm  were  only  commenced 


£ 


in  \Ta\',  1879,  and  arc  naturally  limited  in  extent.  TIk- 
accompanying'  section  (Plan  No.  i)  shows  the  works  actiiall\ 
in  pro<rrcss.  A  workin^^  72  feet  wide  is  bcinj^  extended  <>n 
the  liip  of  the  lode,  which  i^  15  feet  thick,  of  (juartz  mixed 
with  yellow  copprr,  assayin^^  about  3  per  cent,  on  the  j^ross 
output — but  which,  by  simple  dressing.,'  operations,  can  be 
concentrated  to  12  per  cent. — and  of  a  vein  of  copper  worth 
12  per  cent,  about  2  feet  thick,  tlie  latter  being  worth  from 
7  to  8  tons  to  the  running  fathom. 

In  its  present  stage  of  development,  the  mine  shows  as 
favorable  indications  as  Betts  Cove  and  Tilt  Cove  did  in 
their  earh'  stages,  and  already  250  tons  of  12  per  cent,  ore 
and  1,000  tons  of  3  per  cent,  have  been  raised.  Tl  e  former 
quantity  is  now  on  the  pier  awaiting  shipment. 

'1  iiere  is  every  reason  to  expect  that  when  No.  4  shaft 
(section  No.  i)  intersects  the  lode,  still  richer  dejjosits  of  ore 
will  become  available  U>v  extraction.  h\irther  explorations 
should  be  made  east  and  west  ni'  the  present  workings,  the 
indications  being  extremely  favorable,  and  from  these  a 
largely  increased  output  may  be  anticipated. 


Pl-AXr. — The  plant  alread}-  on  the   property,  and  which 
will  be  included  in  the  sale  of  the  mine,  is  : 

I  manager's  house. 

I  store. 

I  barn. 

I  mill  house. 

6  superior  houses. 

29  workmen's  houses. 

I  whim  and  shaft  house. 

1  rock  breaker  (Blake's)  and  engine. 

2  rotary  crushers. 

I  patent  concentrating  apparatus. 

15  heads  of  stamps. 

I  turbine,  with  shafting  and  gearing  complete. 

I  flume,  400  feet  long. 

I  30-ton  lighter,  or  scow. 


35 


I  tramway,  2  feet  i  i  inches  t^aufje  and  R,<Soo  feet  lon^, 
raised  above  snow  level. 

5  wa-ons.  of  2j/(  tons  eapacity  each. 

4  drauf^ht  horses. 

I  ;^><er,  with  tramway,  etc.,  complete,  about  350  feet  lonjj. 

Store  ^oods,  to  the  value  of  /,"<Soo. 

Mining  materials,  to  the  value  of  £550. 

May.  oats.  etc.  "  "  /■200. 

All  in  ^ood  order  and  condition,  and  the  whole  of  which 
I  estimate  at  the  value  of  /^H.ooo. 

I  estin^atc  the  value  of  the  ore  extracted  at  i'j.ooo  upon 
the  spot,  namely,  allowin^^  for  expenses  o(  frei^dn  and  charf^^es 
at  Swansea,  making  together  £\  1,000  as  the  worth  of  plant 
and  ore  in  sight.  A  further  amount  of  ^4,000  sct-ms  to 
have  been  spent  in  preliminar\-  ex])enses  and  in  mining 
works. 


Drkssixc  Fl.nORS. — In  order  to  utilize  the  abundant 
water  i)ower  available,  which  I  estimate  at  about  200  horse 
power,  dressing  operations  will  be  performed  on  the  south 
or  opposite  shore  of  Crescent  Lake. 

It  is  proposed  to  first  pick  over  the  stuff  on  floors  situ- 
atetl  neai-  the  principal  shaft,  where  the  best  ore  will  be 
placed  in  wagons  and  trammed  direct  to  the  shipping- 
wharf  in  the  harbor. 

The  poorer  portion  of  the  output,  consisting  of  stuff 
averaging  from  3  to  6  per  cent.,  will  then  be  loaded  into 
scows  or  barges  holding  about  30  tons  and  ferried  across 
the  lake  at  a  cost  of  about  Ks".  3^/.  per  t<>u,  where  it  will  be 
dressed  up  to  a  tenure  of  about  12  per  cerr.  This  would 
enable  a  great  economy  to  be  effected  in  lU:_  case  of  low 
class  ores,  since  it  not  only  permits  of  a  great  saving  in 
freight  but  also  dispenses  with  the  charges  for  crushing  {^s. 
per  ton)  made  by  the  English  smelters. 

The  existing  water  power  is  derived  from  a  river  within  a 
short  distance  of  the  crushing  floors,  to  which  it  is  conveyed 
by  a  flume  about  400  feet  in  length,  giving  about  200  horse 
power. 


36 

1  lie  u  hole  of  the  inachiiicr>'  it  is  propfjscfl  to  use  has  not 
yet  roaciicd  the  mine;  tliat  which  is  aitiially  erected  con- 
sists of  two  rotai-)'  criisliers— one  capable  of  breriki'^^r  loo 
and  the  seeoiul  70  tons  ..f  raw  material  per  day  of  twenty- 
four  hours,  and  15  Heads  of  improved  American  Revolving 
Stamps,  each  capable  of  treatin^^  about  \\\<>  t<>ns  of  stutV 
working   day  .)f  twenty-four  hours 

MlNlN(;  LAlU)k. — Labor  can  be  obiained  in  an\  reijuired 
quantity,  and  the-  jihysical  standan!  of  the  workmen  sur- 
passes that  f)f  the  avcraj,^e  l-aii^dish  ii:iner.  j'he  wa^us  now 
p.iid  averafrc  from  3.9.  (V/.  for  ordinar>-  laborers  to  ^s.  6d. 
per  day  for  skilled  miners.  The  rale  of  wa^res  is  on  the 
decrease,  as  lar^e  nimibers  ot  men  come  every  year  from 
Nova  Scotia  and  Oax^k-  Hn>lon   in  se.irch  (.f  em])loyment. 

MaiKRIALS, — These  can  be  obtained  at  about  the  same 
rates  as  rule  in  ICnoHsh  Mining  Districts,  and  the  same 
remark  applies  to  coal. 

Cost  of   Livinc— A   single   man  can   live  well  foi  ^ 
and   a  famil\-  for  about  £},    los.   i)ei    month.     The  average 
earnings  of  the  miners  .ire  about  £6  per  man  per  month. 

Stori;.^. — Convenient  stores  have  been  erected  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  landing  wharves  for  the  supply  of  the  mining 
population.  The  profits  from  these  stores  may  be  estimated 
at  25  i)er  cent,  or  are,  in  other  words,  etpiivalent  to  the  dis- 
count of  that  amount  from  the  wages  paid.  Assuming  a 
staff  of  200  men  to  be  employed,  tliis  would  amount  to  a 
sum  of  about  ;!f  2,400  per  annum. 


HARBOR   ACCOMODATION,    FREIGHT,    ETC. 

i\  substantial  pier,  about  350  feet  long,  has  been  erected 
terminating  in  water  17  feet  deep.  This  communicates,  by 
means  of  a  tramway  i  mile  and  two-thirds  in  length  and  2 
feet  1  I  inches  gauge,  with  the  mine.  The  harbor  is  perfectly 
land-locked  and  sheltered  from  every  wind. 


37 


/ 


'i 


F'reights  to  Swansea  arc  20s.  3(1,  per  ton  for  stc-aiucrs, 
13s.  5(1  for  sailing,'  vessels,  and  the  rates  of  insurance  nre 
respeclivelv.  one-iuilf  ami  i  i)er  cent.  Postal  eoinmunuM- 
tion  with  St.  Johii'^  is  maintained  b\-  means  ol  a  mail  ste.  mcr 
which  visits  the  prim  ipal  mining-  centres  in  Notre  I 'ante 
Ha\'  twice  a  miMitli,  with  the  exception  of  the  tirst  4  months 
in  tlie  \  rai-,  when  navij^ation  alon^^  the  east  coast  of  New- 
foundland is  closed  !))•  the  drift  ice.  Diirinj.;  this  period  the 
n.ails  are  convened  h\'  messengers  overland. 

'I'l'lei^rajihic  communication  with  St.  Johns  and  luirope 
has  l)e"en  established  by  the  Newfoundland  ;4overnment  as 
far  north  as  the  principal  mines,  anil  will  probably  be 
extended  to  K<4)ert's  Ann  (it'  aules  from  the  main  whv)  as 
soon  as  tlu'  workings  assume  j-uthcient  impcjrtaiice. 

C(>.>^T  Ol"  I'koDl'Cllnx  — A  large  proportmn  oi'  the  ovc 
raised  will  assa>-  over  12  i)er  cent,  for  copper,  and  will  not 
cost,  inchidins;  mininL^,  breaking,  picking,  hauling,  loadmg, 
and  all  charges  in  Newfoundland,  more  than  £\  10s.  per 
ton.  A  further  portion,  which  must  be  dressed  or  conce'n- 
trated  to  render  it  marketable,  will  cost  £2  lOs.  \>cr  ton. 
The  exact  proportion  of  each  it  i^  difficult  now  to  determine, 
but,  from  calculations  made  on  the  spot,  I  arrive  at  36s.  as 
the  mean  price  for  12  per  cent,  ore  of  the  two  classes 
together,  and,  although  with  extended  operations  the  cost 
per  ton  is  likely  to  decrease  rather  than  increase,  1  consider 
it  prudent  to  adopt  £2  per  ton  in  my  subse(iuent  estimate 
as  the  cost  of  the  ore  placed  on  board  in  Newfoundland. 


ESTIMATE    PER   TON. 


4 


Cost  on  board  in  Newfoundland 

Royalty  .  ■  •■ 

Freight,  say 

Swansea  charges 

Conversion  into  tons  of  21  cwt. 

Insurance        .         •         •         • 

Commissions,  i  %  per  cent,      . 


£ 

s. 

d. 

. 

2 

0 

0 

5 

0 

15 

0 

5 

3 

7 

0 

I 

6 

2 

0      1 

'5 

9 

£l 

'5 

9 

i 


38 

The  present  v;ilue  of  12  per  cent,  ore  is  13s.  per  unit,  or 
i,7  16.S.  per  ton,  and  there  is  a  profit  tlierefore  of  say,  £4 
per  ton. 

Rate  of  Production— With    onlj-  one    working,  as 
described,    and    less    than    30   tnen.   of  whom    18   only   are 
miners,  the  dail\-  production  of  copper  is  nearly  4  tons  of 
12  per  c(<nt.  ore  and  6  of  poor  ore,  which   can  be  converted 
b)'   concentration    into    i  i_,    tons   ..f    12    per    cent,   tenure. 
Sa\-    51.^    tons    of   marketable   ore,    leavinL,^,   as   above  esti- 
mated,  nearly   /:2o    per   day    profit,   from"  which,   h(,wever, 
some  reduction  must  be  made  for  expenses  of  manacremcnt 
m  Newfoundland  .and  ICnyland,— e.xpenses  which  will  weigh 
comparatively  hea\il\   on  a  low  rate  of  production,  but   will 
proportionately  decrease  as  the  output  of  the  mine  becomes 
greater,  as  it  rapitlly  will  do. 

l^y  the  end  of  June,  it  may  be  expected  tliat  1.000  tons 
of  marketable  ore  will  Ix:  ready  for  deliverx-,  and  a  similar 
quantity  in  the  latter  uul  of  the  current  year,— quantities 
sufficient  to  leave  a  large  profit  on  the  first  sear's  operations. 
Satisfied  .as  I  am  that  the  local  management  (if  the  arrange- 
ments 1  roposed  are  carried  into  effect)  wilt  be  conducted 
with  skill,  energ>-,  and  econ.miy,  /  amsu/^r  j^,oon  tons  per 
annum  a  nnnicratr  estimate  of  the  future  returns,  and  that 
a  profit  of  from  £2   los.  tw  X3  los.  jK-r  ton  will  be  made. 

The  appearance  of  the  vei.,  ;Uread>-  opened  out,  and  the 
mineralized  character  and  extent  of  the  neighboring  district 
which  will  be  included  in  the  property  of  the  Company, 
justify  an  opinion  that  this  rale  of  produetiou  loill  be  eon- 
tinned  for  jo  to  jo  years. 

Such  a  production  of  So.ooo  to  120,000  tons  from  the 
property  is  not  high  \vhen  it  is  remembered  that  adjacent 
nnnes  have  i)r(..duced  over  100,000  tons  within  the  last  5 
years,  and  a  neighboring  mine,  commenced  in  1878,  20,000 
tons  in  one  year,  without  any  signs  of  decrease  in  their 
probable  output. 

Newfoundland  is  destmed  to   become  one  of  the  most, 
if  not   the    most    important    centre    of  copper   production.' 


" 


l"WBBPWWf 


! 


*f£sr.        a» s. 


1 


J 


39 


There  seems  tc>  be  a  godd  future  for  the  copper  trade,  and 
at  present  prices  the  working  of  Robert's  Arm  will  leave 
large  profits  ;  and  woiiM  leave  some  ])rofit  even  at  the 
lowest  prices  which  cojjper  has  rccentl\-  touched. 

I  have  taken  throughout  I2  per  cent,  as  the  standard  of 
ores  which  will  be  delivered  in  JCngland.  Some  ores  will 
undoubtedly  be  delivered  of  a  lower  tenure,  hut  these  I  have 
excluded  from  my  calculation  and  estimates  ;  they  will 
however,  naturalh'  lea\e  some  margin  for  profit,  otherwise 
they  would  either  not  be  shipped  or  would  be  picked  and 
dressed  to  a  higher  percentage. 

M\-  assistant,  Mr.  Seymour,  who  made  the  inspection, 
has  a  quantitN'  of  detailed  notes  and  can  gi\-e  man\-  particu- 
lars which  I  ha\e  not  thought  necessar>'  to  insert  in  this 
report. 

I  shall  be  glad  to  wait  upon  )-ou  and  to  gi\e  an)'  further 
information  you  may  require. 

1  remain,  Gentlemen,  your  obedient  servant, 

(Signed)     T.  SopwrTH, 

Memb.  Inst.  C.  E. 


APPENDIX. 

Analyses  made  by  Messrs,  Richardson  &  Co.,  of  Swansea. 

(Copy)     Assay  Office  and  Laborator\-  (Vc  Wharves, 

.Swansea,  January  5th,  1  880. 

Samples  of  copper  ore  reccn-ed  January  3d: 

No.   I.    Sample    of    prill   ore    readx-   for    shiiMUent.      Copper, 

J9-;-8   "(1-      Silver — Traces. 
No.  2.   Sample  from    (|u,nt/.osc    portion    of  vein       Copp.  /, 

5^  %■      Silver — i'races. 
No.  3.   Sample  from   chloritic  portion  of  vein   in   foot  wall. 

Copper,  644   "(,.      Sib-er — Traces 
No.  4.   Sample     from     \ein     in     principal     slope.      Copper, 

4?-j:!   "'„',      Silver — Traces. 
No.  5.   Sample   of   partl\'    concentrated    ore    from   crushing 

mill.      Cop}K:r,  4'/^   '\,.      Silver — Traces. 

(Signed)  J.  I lKR.\i.\.\N  James. 


c(,y  oJJJ^l^it^fjms 


LITTLE  BAY  MINE 


JOSEPH  WMHKC 


I 


40 


REPORT  ON  BRTTS  COVE  COPPER  MINES, 
NEWFOUNDLAND. 

By  David  Rankine,  C.  &  M.  E. 

The  following  report  was  made,  at  the  request  of  the  late 
William  Dixon,  by  Mr.  David  Rankine.  of  Messrs.  Ronald, 
Johnstone  &  Rankine,  of  Glasgow,  who  are  among  the 
leading  mining-engineers  in  the  United  Kingdom.  M. 

Glasgow,  27th  August,  1878. 

Having  been  asked  to  give  a  summarized  view  of  what 
came  under  my  observation  during  my  recent  visit  to  the 
mines  of  Bctts  Cove,  as  more  fully  detailed  in  my  report  of 
the  3d  inst.,  T  note  the  following  as  the  more  salient  points  : 

The  copper-bearing  rocks  at  Betts  Cove  are  a  chloritic 
slate,  more  or  less  impregnated  with  copper.  In  some 
cases,  the  ore  is  concentrated  in  pockets  ;  in  others,  it  is  in- 
termixed throughout  the  rocks,  while  in  others  it  is  found 
in  veins.  Where  the  veins  appear  on  the  surface,  they  are 
of  narrow  width,  and  show  but  faint  traces  of  copper.  They 
dip  at  an  angle  of  about  80",  and  when  sunk  into,  are  soon 
found  several  feet  in  width,  expanding  at  no  great  depth  to 
as  many  yards  of  ore,  one- half  of  the  mass  of  which  may 
be  readily  hand-dressed  to  a  i  5  per  cent,  ore,  the  other  con- 
taining about  4  per  cent,  copper. 

The  mining  operations  have  been  practically  confined  to 
Betts  Head,  which  abuts  on  Betts  Cove,  and  to  three  veins 
of  ore  which  have  been  found  lying  almost  parallel  to  each 
(^ther.  The  mode  of  working  has  been  by  sinking  shafts  in 
the  veins,  cross  cutting  from  one  to  the  other,  driving  lateral 
mines  at  different  levels  in  the  veins  and  "  stoping  "  the  (jre 
between.  The  veins  frequently  swell  into  large  pockets,  the 
whole,  or  as  much  as  can  be  safely  got  being  minctl  out,  and 
an  immense  chamber  thus  formed  below  ground.  The 
workings  have  not  extended  much  beyond  a  length  of  about 
150  yards,  a  breadth  of  about  50  yards,  and  depth  of  about 
70  yards.     That  depth  has  been  won  by  sinking  shafts,  and 


> 


> 


41 

from  these,  s^^allerics  have  been  broken  off  at  three  (HfTerent 
levels,  the  first  about  25  yards  from  the  surface,  the  second 
about  50  yards,  and  the  third  about  70  yards.  The  second 
level  is  now  reached  by  a  vertical  shaft,  known  as  the  "  hji^nne 
Shaft,"  1}\'  wliich  the  ore  is  almost  wholly  r.'ised  to  the  surface. 
The  thirtl  le\el  is  won  and  worked  by  .ui  un(leri;round 
incline  which  falls  away  from  near  the  bottom  of  the  "  l".nL,nne 
Shaft."  I'here  is  still  a  fourth  or  lower  level.  20  yards  under 
the  thii'd,  which  has  been  won  by  winzes  sunk  from  the  third 
level.  Little  minin<^  has  yet  been  done  from  or  by  it,  one 
reason  for  that  bein^^  the  want  of  time,  the  other  reason  being 
that  between  the  third  ami  fourth  levels  the  rocks  ;;radu- 
ally  become  more  homoLjeneous  and  read\-  with  an  almost 
vertical  clevea;.,a',  the  copi)er  bein<f  disseminated  throui^liout 
the  rocks,  and  the  whole  so  friable  that  the  drift  mines 
must  be  carefully  timbered  and  gearerl. 

The  (|uantity  of  t)re  actually  shipped  during  the  last 
three  \ears  from  the  limited  area  reterred  to  was  6o,ooo 
tons,  and  within  that  area  a  large  quantity  of  ore  is  now  dis- 
closed standing  in  the  pillars,  floors,  and  roofs  of  the  \ari- 
ous  levels. 

A  further  cpumtity  is  proved  by  mines,  but  which  by 
reason  of  the  percolation  of  water  from  the  ponds  above 
cannot  be  worked.  It  is  almost  impracticable  to  ])ut  a 
figure  on  the  quantit\-  thus  disclosed,  />uf  it  should  amount, 
I  believe,  to  several  kuudred  thousand  tons. 

As  before  stated,  thi'  surface  indications  of  the  ore  are 
comparatively  minute.  Nevertheless,  such  as  the\-  are,  they 
seem  to  me  clearl\'  to  indicate  a  continuance  of  the  veins 
now  being  worked  onwaitl  to  the  sea  at  Chance  Cove,  a  dis- 
tance of  1,100  yards. 

At  various  points  in  that  distance  the  veins  show  on  the 
surface,  having  similar  outward  characteristics,  both  as  re- 
gards "strike"  and  inclination. 

At  the  time  of  my  visit  the  sinking  of  twe'  shafts  had 
been  commenced  in  one  of  the  veins  near  Chance  Cove. 

One  of  these  shafts  had  been  carried  down  about  five 
fathoms,  the   vein   being  found   of  increasing  thickness  and 

4 


42 


richness.  Hk'  veins  wore:  also  bciii};  further  proven  by 
mines  driven  from  the  shafts  at  Hetts  I  lead  in  a  north-west 
directit)n,  and  these  showed  that  the  ore  lield  onward  in 
that  direction  equal  in  qiiahty  and  (|iiantity  to  tliat  wiiich 
had  l)een  worked. 

It  therefore  seems  to  me  that  all  the  indications  lead  to 
the  conclusion  that  the  Betts  I  lead  operations  have  as  yet 
merel>-  tapped  the  deposit  which  may  be  reasonably  ex- 
pected to  be  found  there. 

If  I  am  correct  in  the  opinion  thus  formed  there  should 
practicall)'  be  no  limit  to  the  profitable  endurance  of  these 
mines,  for  although  considerable  mining  skill  has  been  dis- 
plajed  in  past  operations,  1  am  satisfied  that  much  can  yet 
be  done  in  reducing  the  cost  of  raisin;j,  tiie  ore,  in  recover- 
ing what  is  now  standing  in  the  floors,  roofs,  and  pillars,  in 
working  the  c'eeper  and  softer  ores,  and  in  reducing  the 
cost  of  transit  from   the  mines  to  the  place  of  shipment. 

Savings  in  these  respects  would  allow  for  further  reduc- 
tions in  the  \alue  of  copper  without  diminishing  profits, 
and  in  the  event  of  co[)per  attaining  former  or  even  main- 
taining present  rates  the  outcome  from  the  mines  would 
leave  a  large  percentage  of  profit.  Such  a  result  would,  I 
believe,  flow  from  the  adoption  of  the  scheme  1  aclvocate, 
viz.:  The  dri\ing  of  a  mine  from  near  the  level  of  the  sea 
at  Chance  Cove,  the  mine  being  driven  along  the  strike  of 
ore  of  tlie  copper  veins  and   in  itself  being  a  paying  work. 

The  imi)()rtant  points  to  be  achieved  by  such  a  mine  are 
the  draining  of  the  whole  deposits  to  a  depth  of  one  hun- 
dred feet  under  the  present  deepest  working,  and  the  work- 
ing out  of  tlv;  whole  mass  of  ore  by  open  quarrying,  at  a 
cost  per  ton  probably  less  by  a  half  than  what  is  now  m- 
curred,  while  great  additional  facility  for  airing  the  mines, 
where  mining  must  be  resorted  to,  would  be  also  obtained  ; 
and  by  the  construction  of  a  tramroad  along  the  margin  of 
the  sea  from  Chance  Cove,  the  cost  of  transit  to  Hetts  Cove 
would  be  largely  reduced. 

A  better  mode  of  transit  would,  however,  be  had  by 
driving  another  level  mine  diiect  fr(,ni  Betts  Cove  to   Betts 


4 


d 


43 

Head,  altlvnij^li  the  coustiiiction  of  lli.it  mi^'ht  he  reason- 
ably deferred  imlil  the  rocks  between  had  been  proved  by 
l)orin}.f. 

Such  a  work  woidd  repay  itself  in  three  or  four  years, 
and  after  that  would  result  in  a  ^rain  of  several  Wm+rr^ 
thousand  pounds  per  annum 

These  remarks  have  been  principally  directed  towards 
the  development  of  present  mininjf  operations. 

Hut  i)t  yond  that  there  are  indications  of  other  veins  of 
protitable  character  extendini^  from  Dr.  I'.arl's  I'oint,  and 
also  from  Hurton's  Pond;  the  former  have  been  onl)-  partially 
tested  by  shallow  sinkm^s  and  surface  explorations,  which, 
althoiis^rh  not  yet  disclosin^.^  such  rich  masses  of  ore  as  ha\e 
been  opened  out  at  Mett  Head,  nevertheless  ^ive  good 
grounds  for  believing  that  the  ileposits  only  recpiire  further 
opening  out  to  pro\e  of  high  value. 

With  regard  to  Hurton's  Pond:  It  was  at  one  time 
worked  by  a  company  who,  after  some  mining  and  sinking 
in  two  veins  which  outcroj)  near  the  sea,  abandoned  llu: 
work  with,  1  believe,  the  loss  of  a  large  amoimt  of  mone\ . 

They,  nevertheless,  took   out  a   considerable  (pLUitity  of 
good  ore,  while  I  \s  as  there:    the  water  which  had   accuuui 
lated    in  the  shafts  is  being  pumi)enl,  and   it  was  removetl  to 
such  extent  that  partial  access  was  obtained,  and  good  sam- 
ples of  ore  were  got. 

I  am  hopeful  that,  with  facilities  now  to  be  had  through 
Hetts  Head  establishment,  this  will  prove  a  xaluable 
auxiliary. 

With  reference  to  the  i)l.mt  at  Hetts  Head,  perhaps  all 
that  is  necessary  to  remark  in  regard  to  it  is  that  it  is  most 
complete  and  ample.  I'he  harbor  at  Betts  C:ove  affords  good 
anchorage,  and  the  epiays  which  liave  been  constructed  can 
accommodate  a  considerable  amount  of  shipping.  During 
the  fortnight  1  was  there  the  loading  of  a  steamer  with 
1,400  tons  of  ore  was  completed.  The  steamer  I  went  out 
with  was  discharged  of  500  tons  of  coke,  and  loadetl  with 
1,900  tons  of  ore;  a  sailing  vessel,  with  about  1,400  tons  of 
cargo,  being  also  in  process  of  discharging,  there  being  also 


44 

ample  wharfas^re  for  the  coasting  steamers  and  other  shipping 
that  now  freciuent  the  place. 

I  he  roads,  raih,-  vs,  houses,  stores,  workshops,  foundry, 
and  other  works  and  plant,  are  all  ona  similarly  complete  scale, 
while  the  jigc^nng  machine  and  the  smelting  works  erected! 
and  erecting,  will,  for  the  future,  permit  the  poorer  ores  to 
be  profitably  utilized.  There  is,  indeed,  an  abundance  of 
plant  and  machinery  on  the  ground,  and  labor  can  be  also 
readily  commanded.  At  my  firsi  visit  four  years  ago,  the 
[)lace  v/as  nothing  but  a  rocky  wilderness,  utterly  devoid  of 
all  accommodation  or  appliances  whatever,  and  comj)ara- 
tively  scanty  evidence  to  be  obtained  of  the  stor-  of  wealth 
vvithin. 

1  nevertheless  ventured  to  express  <!  hi^h  opinion  of  the 
leaseholds,  ^ind  that  has  been  fully  b(.rne  out  by  the  results. 
Much  of  that  success  has  been  due  to  the  energetic  and  able 
management  of  Mr.  Ellershausen,  and  under  his  direction  1 
look  on  the  future  with  equally  .sanguine  expectation. 

Ke{)orted  b>- 
(•'^ignt.'d)  David  R.wkine. 


1 


Cm! 


mam 


